One of Their Own
by SVUFanatic611
Summary: When Kathleen goes missing, the SVU detectives have to beat a clock while still trying not to let the case get too close to them.
1. Prologue: Elliot's Address

Title: _One of Their Own _

Author: SVUFanatic611

Rating: PG

A/n: Well, inspiration for this one came from The West Wing in Season 5 when Zoey is…well, don't want to give it away…hope you enjoy it! Please review!

Disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

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**Jean's Performing Arts Academy  
****December 3, 2003****  
-4:****06pm-**

"Listen, I'm going to go home, Greg. Thanks for helping me with this pre-calculus homework," said Kathleen Stabler to one of her good friends, Greg.

"No problem. I wasn't given a big brain to keep it all for myself," he replied. He paused as he looked at Kathleen putting on her lavender shoes in place of her ballet shoes. He sat down on the edge of the stage next to her. "I'm really sorry to hear about your break-up with Phillip," he said sympathetically, but he really wasn't sorry. Phillip was a jerk and Kathleen was the only who didn't realize it until a month after she had agreed to go out with him.

Kathleen looked up from her feet and smiled a little. "Thanks, but I'm not sorry, so you shouldn't be. I was stupid and I realize that now. I'm just glad I got out of it and got up the courage to break-up with him…but thanks anyway."

"No problem. How about you and me go and get a latte or something? Maybe cheer you up a bit?"

"Umm…actually I can't. I gotta go pick up my dad."

"Pick up your dad?" he asked, repeating it, thinking if he did, he might understand it more. "Isn't he the one that's supposed to be picking up you?"

"Well, yeah, but I always complain to him that he never lets me drive anywhere, so he asked me this morning to give him a ride to the precinct. My father does weird things like that."

"It's not too weird. Just be happy you have a good father _and_ a wonderful mother."

Kathleen hated when he mentioned his family, mostly because she didn't know how to respond. Greg was a great guy, but he had been a bit neglected as a child. His dad came home drunk sometimes and his mother…well, he never knew his mother. She wanted to tell her dad, but he made her promise not to. It was a promise she intended on keeping.

"Yeah…look, thanks for trying to cheer me up. I'll talk to you later," she said, jumping off the stage onto the floor. "I gotta go…and I'll talk to my dad about going to the library tomorrow."

And with that, she walked out of the dance room and into the parking lot, on her way to the 1-6.

**SVU Squadroom  
-****4:47pm-**

It was actually a quiet day at the squadroom. The case they had recently been working on was solved. Olivia sat at her desk finishing her paperwork, while Elliot waited quietly until he could go home and be with his family during these Christmas spirit-filled days. Every other holiday, he had been so busy working that he barely made it home for Christmas, but it looked like the scum-bags of the city were finally giving him a break.

Olivia looked up at her partner. "Elliot, why are you just sitting there? I would've thought that that you'd be gone already on a day like this."

He smiled. '_She knows me to well_,' he thought to himself. "Normally, I would, but Kathleen's picking me up." He cringed just a little at the mention of his second daughter driving.

"What do you mean Kathleen's picking you up?" she said with confusion.

"Well, she does have her driver's license and always complains about how I won't let her go anywhere on her own. Well, this morning, I surprised her and asked her to give me a ride to the precinct."

Olivia looked at him in surprise. "Well, aren't you nice? I'm sure you were a fly in her ear telling her what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. Am I right?"

He smiled and sighed. "More or less."

"Well, how'd she do?"

Elliot liked how she did that. She always asked about his kids. "Not too bad. We still have to work on some things, but I'm here and unharmed, aren't I?"

She slightly laughed. "Well, just make sure to listen and watch instead of criticize. It can't be easy driving with you in the passenger seat. Trust me…I know."

"Well, gee, thanks." They remained silent for awhile until Elliot spoke up again. "Excuse me, nature calls."

"Elliot, I know that I'm your partner and we don't have any secrets, but you really don't have to share that kind of information with me," she said sarcastically.

"I'll remember that for the next time," he said, walking toward the bathroom.

Soon after he exited, a young girl of about sixteen walked into the squadroom. She had golden brown hair that was shoulder length and slightly flipped outward at the end. She wore a purple pleated skirt with a white blouse. The outfit was complete with lavender open-toed shoes, impeccable make-up, and sunglasses. Little did Olivia know who the girl was.

She noticed the teen and greeted her. "Hi, can I help you?"

"Yeah, is my dad here?" she asked in a sweet tone.

"Well, I don't know. Who's your dad?" she said, a little confused.

The girl laughed and took off your sunglasses to reveal bright blue eyes – eyes that could've only been inherited from Elliot. "Olivia!? It's me, Kathleen. I would really hope that you know who my dad is."

"Hey Kathleen!" she said, the two girls embracing each other. "I haven't seen you in so long. You've grown up so much."

Kathleen smiled and it reminded Olivia of Elliot. It was obvious what genes she inherited. "Well, thank you."

"Your dad went to the bathroom. So…how's school going?"

"It's going okay," she said, sitting in her father's chair. "It's my junior year, which means I'm just waiting to be a senior."

"Ah, I remember those days," Olivia replied, taking her seat. "And to be honest, I like the present much better…_much _better."

Kathleen laughed a little. "Yeah, I can't wait until it's over. It's like sometimes I just want to run away from it all. And don't get me started on all the jerks called boys…College life is looking so much better and better. "

"Where are you planning to go?"

"I don't really know. Dad wants me to stay local like Maureen, although he won't admit it. But, I really want to move out of state; get the entire college experience. My grades aren't that bad. I'm thinking about scholarships."

"The best of luck with that. I know you'll do great no matter where you decide to go."

"Well, thank you. That means a lot." At that moment, Elliot walked in. Kathleen noticed him and smiled at her father.

"You know, Dad, everytime you come to pick me up and I'm late, you get mad. Now, what's to stop me from feeling the same way?" she said, with a smirk.

"The fact that I'm your father. Now, give me the keys so we can get out of here before I'm called to a scene," he said, holding out his hand.

Kathleen raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean 'give you the keys'? I'm driving."

"No, you're not, not in rush hour traffic."

"Well, what do you call this morning's traffic? I made it through that just fine."

"Kathleen…"

"Please don't 'Kathleen' me. I want a legitimate reason why you won't let me drive home."

"Just give me the keys."

"Please, Dad. How are you ever going to learn to trust me if you don't give me a chance?"

Elliot took a deep breath and glanced at Olivia, as if getting her opinion on everything. She noticed this and replied, "Oh, don't get me in the middle of this. You decide what you want to."

Olivia had sat back and watched the banter that had gone on between her partner and his daughter. She didn't intrude in on the conversation, but loved how they had that kind of relationship. She was a little jealous that she never had that growing up.

Elliot took a deep breath. "Alright, fine…you can drive. Go to the car and I'll meet you out there in a minute."

"Yes! Thank you, Daddy," she said, kissing her father on the cheek. She started out, but turned around before leaving. "It was good to see you again, Olivia."

Olivia picked up her head from the file and smiled. "Thanks, same here."

Kathleen walked out with a little spring in her step. Elliot went to his locker, pulled out the messages that were waiting for him and flipped through them. "I swear that child is going to be the death of me."

Olivia laughed. "I don't know about that. I like her. She definitely makes a formidable opponent."

"Yeah, real great. Listen, do you want to join us for dinner? I can tell Kathy to set an extra plate."

Olivia smiled. He always asked her that, but she always declined. She was with him all day. She didn't want to intrude on the only time he had with his family. That day's response was no different. "No thanks. Just give them all the best from me."

"Alright. See you tomorrow, Liv."

"Bye, Elliot."

Elliot made his way out of the squadroom and to the car. He saw his daughter in the driver's seat and he couldn't help but remember when she was a little girl. Now she had turned into such a beautiful, young woman ready for the world. And whether or not he liked it, he was going to have to accept it.

He reached the car and slipped into the passenger seat. "Well, sweetheart, let's go home. Remember, take the car out of 'park' and…"

"Dad, I know how to drive."

"Alright, well let's go." Kathleen started up the car and Elliot continued. "Did you get your pre-calculus test back today?"

"Umm…yeah," she said, nervously.

"So, how did you do?"

"Umm…not too good. I got a 64."

"Kathleen, you could've done better."

"No, Dad, that's the point. If I could've done better, I would've done better."

"Don't pull that crap on me, Kat. I don't want to hear of these kind of grades anymore, okay? Instead of going out to the movies with your friends, you could spend that time at the library."

"Actually, speaking of the library…I was wondering if I could go to the library with Greg tomorrow after school."

"No," he said sternly.

"Why can't I go to the library?"

"I never said you couldn't go to the library. I just said no to the fact that you'd be going with Greg."

"Dad! We have an Aztec empire report due in a week and we need to get our facts together. Plus, Greg is just a friend and you know that."

"Well, invite him over to our house to study."

"That would be great, but our house isn't filled with books about Aztec culture and Liz and Dickie would scare anyone out of their minds."

"Maybe that's the plan," he said, smiling.

"Dad, come on. Please say I can go."

"I guess you can, but you have to ask your mother. And, how are you guys going to get there?"

"I already asked Mom and she said it was okay and we're just going to walk. It's not far from school."

"Just make sure you call me every now and then to check up."

"Dad! I'm sixteen. I hate having to stop what's going on with my friends to make a call to my over-protective father. It's just to the library!"

"Don't raise your voice to me, Kathleen Gabrielle. And it's not that I'm over-protective, it's that all those other parents are under-protective. Now, it's whether you can go to the library and call me or you can stay at home and study by yourself."

Kathleen realized that she was fighting a fight she had already lost. When her father said something, he meant it and he never backed down from anything he said. She sighed as she answered, "Alright, fine."

They remained silent as Kathleen drove them home.

**New York City**** Public Library  
****December 4, 2003****  
-5:****06pm-**

"I'm just so tired of it, Greg. I mean, he treats me like a little kid, but if I do something wrong, he expects me to face the consequences like an adult. He can't have it both ways," said Kathleen as she picked out a book off the shelf.

"He's just trying to protect you, Kathleen. It can't be easy seeing what he sees everyday and then coming home to his wife and kids. Maybe you should be more understanding of that."

"Are you sticking up for my father?" she asked as she turned around and smiled at her friend.

"Well…yes, I am. It's the truth and you said before that that's all you wanted from your friends."

"I guess, but…"

"Don't worry about it, Kat. You're here aren't you?"

"Yeah, but I still have to call my dad."

"Then stop complainin' about it and just get it over with," he said, as they walked back to the table and he handed her cell phone over to her. Kathleen took it and went to an empty aisle to call Elliot.

_'She doesn't realize how good she's got it,'_ Greg thought to himself. Kathleen came back and took the books off the table into her arms with somewhat of a scowl on her face.

"Kat, everything okay?"

"No, not really. My dad says that I have to get home."

"Well, we've been here for like an hour. Maybe it _is_ time for you to go," he said, trying to assure her.

"It's just…it's typical Dad. I mean, he's not even home yet, but he's the one saying that _I_ need to be home more."

"Don't worry about it, Kat. We've got our report outlined, which is all we need right now. I'll call you tonight and then we can figure it out."

"Yeah…okay. How about you come over for dinner tonight? I know my mom won't mind and I really don't think my dad will be there. That way, we can finish this."

Greg looked sympathetically at his friend. "I really wish I could, Kat, but my dad is expecting me home. I'll call you," he said, beginning to look at his watch. "Crap, it's time for me to go, too. I'm due home in fifteen minutes. I know I promised you I'd walk you home, but you wouldn't mind if…"

"Don't worry about it, Greg. I'm a big girl. I can walk home by myself. You should get going and I'll talk to you tonight," she said, as they checked out the books and exited the library.

"Alright, see ya, Kat," he said, waving over his shoulder and walking home in the opposite direction. Kathleen watched him walk off and silently prayed for his safety.

Kathleen walked home, her mind full of thoughts. She listened to the Christmas music that filled the street coming from the various stores. She made a mental note that she still had presents to buy.

Then something happened that changed her life forever…

**Stabler Residence  
-7:****04pm-**

"I'm sorry, Greg. She's not home yet," said Elliot, talking to Greg over the phone.

"She's not home? We left the library two hours ago."

"Two hours? That long?" he said, beginning to grow concerned.

"Yeah…we left as soon as she hung up from your conversation with her. I would've thought that she'd be home by now."

"Elliot!! Hang up the phone. Dinner's ready," said Kathy, entering the living room, drying her hands on a towel.

Elliot waved in his wife to the living room and she sat next to him on the couch. "Are you sure that you left after she called me?" he asked Greg.

Kathy looked a little worried, but not too much. "Yes, Mr. Stabler. I'm positive."

"Okay, thanks. Kathleen will call you back later." Elliot hung up the phone with a sigh.

"What was that all about?" asked Kathy.

"That was Greg. He said that he and Kathleen left the library at five, but it's seven now. Last time I checked, it didn't take two hours to walk home the library," he said, worried.

"Elliot, don't worry. I'm sure she's fine. Maybe she stopped by a friend's or something. I'm sure she's got a good reason for this."

"She should've called. She's never this irresponsible."

"Elliot, come eat dinner. I'm sure there's no reason to sweat over this."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because I know my daughter."

"She's my daughter, too."

"Just come eat dinner."

Elliot reluctantly obeyed his wife and ate dinner with his family. He thought about Kathleen but realized that maybe Kathy was right. After dinner, he helped clear the table and, leaving the twins to the dishes, he grabbed a beer and walked into the living room. Passing by his front door, he realized that a piece of paper was lying on the floor – as if it had been shoved underneath the door. He picked it up and almost fell to his knees. It was a picture of Kathleen with her pants off, tied up in ropes with her mouth duct-taped, hunched over in a corner. A note was attached that said, "Let's play hide-and-seek, Detective. I'm hiding your precious daughter, and you have 24 hours to find her. If you don't find her, something will happen…"

"Kathy!! Get out here now!!" Elliot screamed as he opened the door and started to search for anyone that might've left the note.

He found nothing and went back inside, panting. Kathy entered and looked at her husband perplexed. "El, what's wrong?"

"THIS! This is what's wrong!" he said, yelling, handing the note to Kathy. She took it in her hands and her eyes widened after reading it.

"I told you something was wrong!" Elliot said, as he reached for the phone. It rang two times before someone picked up. "Captain, it's Elliot…" He began to tell his story while Kathy stared into space trying to make sense of it all. She really thought that she had stopped at a friend's house or went Christmas shopping.

**SVU Squadroom  
-8:48pm- **

"I'm headin' out guys. See ya tomorrow," said Olivia as she grabbed her coat.

"No, you're not going anywhere. We got a high priority case. I need all three of you on it," said Cragen as he walked out of his office.

Olivia's heart sank just a little. She just wanted to go home, but being a detective had its sacrifices. "Well, what about Elliot?" she asked. He said 'I need the _three_ of you…'

Cragen ignored Olivia's question and continued. '_I'm not the right person to tell,'_ he thought. "Sixteen year old girl kidnapped and family got a note. Here's the address. Go talk to them," he said, handing over a piece of paper.

Olivia noticed that her captain ignored her question, but didn't make a big deal out of it. She took the paper in her hands and her eyes widened. "Cap', this is…this is…" she said, not being able to get the words out.

"I know what it is, Olivia. Just get down there." And with that, he left for his office.

"What is it, Olivia?" asked Munch.

"Yeah, Olivia, is it somethin' special?" asked Fin, as he and Munch walked over to her, both of them putting on their coats.

"This…this is Elliot's address."

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a/n – I'm sorry this is a really long chapter, but I didn't know where to stop it. Future chapters will be shorter, but still full of info! Hope you enjoyed the first chapter!


	2. Haunted House

Title: _One of Their Own _

Author: SVUFanatic611

Rating: PG

A/n: Chapter 2 up! Enjoy! From now on, I'm going to be switching on and off from POVs. I might use first or third person, but I will make sure to let you guys know which one. If you think it becomes a little too confusing, just drop me a line in a review or IM. My email is temporarily down.

Disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

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**Stabler Residence  
Same Day (****Dec. 4, 2003****)  
-****9:13pm-**

_Olivia Benson's POV _

I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe it was happening to Elliot and his family.

Cragen didn't tell us which daughter it was by name, but we all knew it was Kathleen. She was the only sixteen year old Stabler girl. I couldn't believe it was her. I mean, I had just seen her a day earlier and she looked fine. But then again, you can't predict something like that.

Munch, Fin, and I drove to Elliot's house in silence. I think we all wanted to say something, but we just didn't know what. How do you respond to something like this? I mean, we had all had our share of kidnapped children cases, but this one…this one was a fellow officer's kid. This one was Elliot's kid. This one was one of our own.

We arrived at their house in Queens. Munch, Fin, and I walked to the front door, but before ringing the doorbell, I mentioned something to them.

"Guys, listen, when we get inside, let _me _talk to Elliot, okay?"

They both nodded their heads in agreement. I knew, and they knew, that I was equipped with dealing with him. I had been his partner for almost seven years and I knew exactly what to say.

We rang the doorbell and Kathy answered. She looked so tired and exhausted. I couldn't blame her. Her daughter's life was in the hands of a psycho.

"Hey, guys. Come on in," she answered a little absent-mindedly. "Elliot! They're here."

And that's exactly when I saw it. I had never seen Elliot torn down or intimidated. But, when I walked into his house and saw his face as he turned the corner, I saw his life destroyed. And the only thing I knew that would make him feel better, was to have his daughter in his arms. And I knew that that was _my _job.

"Hey, Olivia, Munch, Fin," he answered as he acknowledged each of us. We all muttered what were supposed to be 'hellos' and then Munch's cell phone rang.

Elliot spoke up to avoid uncomfortable silence. "How about we go into the kitchen so we can talk?" Fin and I nodded and followed, leaving Munch to his phone call.

Kathy, Elliot, Fin, and I sat down at the dining room table, and I could tell it had been the first time in hours that they had sat. I wanted to begin my questioning, but Munch came in, interrupting.

"That was Cragen. He wants me and Fin down at the station," he said, poking his head in.

Fin got up from his seat and followed Munch out of the house.

"Listen, guys, I know this has got to be hard. I cannot even begin to understand the pain each of you are going through, but I need to ask you questions," I said, taking a deep breath. I was off to a good start. When we arrived, I didn't even know how to start a conversation.

Kathy nodded and Elliot remained silent to show no disagreements were going to be offered.

"Okay, now, when was the last time you saw or heard from Kathleen?"

Elliot took command of the question. "I dropped her off at school at 7am. She had arranged to go the library with a friend…Greg. Greg was his name. She called me around 5pm and that's when I told her that she need to get home," he answered shakily. I quickly jotted down some notes and continued.

"Okay, what's Greg's last name?"

Kathy interjected when Elliot didn't speak up. "Dean, Greg Dean. He's Kathleen's friend. He's in the same class and goes to Jean's with her."

"Who's Jean?" I asked, writing down the boy's last name.

"No, it's Jean's Performing Arts Academy. He and Kathleen take a couple classes there afterschool on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. They take voice, ballet, and piano."

"Okay. Now, do you have Greg's address?"

Kathy kept the answers coming as Elliot remained silent, staring into space. I could tell that scenarios of what was happening to Kathleen were running through his head. When I had gotten the news, my thoughts were exactly the same.

"No, I don't. I've only met him a couple times, but he seems like a nice boy. But, he's kind of secretive. I always felt like he was hiding something when I met him. But, he was always respectful around Kathleen," she said. Tears overwhelmed her as she mentioned her daughter's name, and tears threatened to fall from my own eyes, but I quickly found my composure.

I patiently waited as she found hers. This had to be hard. I understood that. She wiped her tears and apologized. "I'm so sorry, Olivia. It's just…"

"Don't worry about it. I understand," I said, as she sniffed away her tears. She looked at me, waiting for me to continue. "Do you know anyone who would want to hurt Kathleen?"

Elliot shook his head. "No, as far I as know, she gets along with everyone."

I nodded, taking it as an answer I didn't like, but I could tell that Kathy was holding something back. "Kathy, do you know of anyone who'd want to hurt her?" I asked in a gentle tone.

She looked up at me with red, irritated eyes. "Her ex-boyfriend, Phillip O' Brian."

I jotted down the name and I saw Elliot's eyes turn sharp at the word 'boyfriend'. He obviously had no clue. I ignored it and continued.

"Why would he want to hurt her, Kathy?"

"She…she broke up with him yesterday. She talked to me about him and said that he was turning out to be a real jerk and controlling. I knew he'd get physical if she didn't break it off. Kathleen realized it, too and told me that she was going to tell him that it was over. When she came home yesterday, she said that he didn't take it too well," Kathy said in about two breaths. "She said that he punched a locker when they were done talking."

"Do you know any more about Phillip?"

"He's a senior. I don't know his address or anything, if that's what your asking."

I nodded. "Elliot, Cragen mentioned a note, is that true?"

He came out of his trance. "Yeah, here it is," he said, getting it out of his back pocket. I guessed that he put it there so it wasn't left floating around for anyone else's wondering eyes.

I took the note with the picture attached into my hand and turned cold as a stared at it. No wonder why Elliot looked the way he did. I made a promise to myself that, no matter what it took, I would make sure this case got solved.

I closed my notebook after I finished questioning. "Okay, thank you so much. Would you mind if I took a look inside Kathleen's room?" I knew it was a stretch asking. If I had a daughter, I would feel uncomfortable with people messing with her stuff, but they knew why I had to ask.

Before either of them had a chance to answer, Liz came running in, hopping onto my partner's lap.

"Daddy, when is Kathleen going to come home? She promised that she'd help me with my math homework," she said, leaning into Elliot's grasp. I could tell that both Kathy and Elliot were trying to hold back their emotions.

"Sweetie, we're going to talk about that in the morning. But, it is way past your bedtime. Now, give me and your mother a kiss goodnight and then take Olivia up the stairs and show her where Kat's room is, okay? Then, hop in bed," Elliot said.

I felt like he was making a mistake waiting until morning to tell the twins what was going on, that he was just postponing the inevitable. But what did I know? I didn't have kids. I couldn't possibly understand what thoughts were going through their minds.

After the mention of my name, Liz turned around and acknowledged me. "Oh, hi Olivia!" she cheerily.

I waved to try to show her that her family's world wasn't going to come crashing down. "Hi, Liz." She kissed Elliot and Kathy and then she approached me and took my hand in hers. "Come on, let me show you where Kat's room is." I let her lead me up the stairs and to outside Kathleen's door. "Well, here it is. You can go in, just make sure not to break anything. Last time, I broke her hair straightener, and she got mad. And you _really_ don't want Kathleen to be mad."

I laughed a little. "Alright, I promise I won't break anything."

"Goodnight, Olivia."

"Goodnight, Liz."

I watched Liz make her way to the door of her room as I placed my hand on the doorknob. Before I entered, Liz's voice stopped me. "Olivia, is Kathleen okay?"

Oh God. What was I going to say? "Actually, Liz, your mom and dad are going to talk to you about that, okay? I'm really not the right person to ask." I knew I was being just a little too formal with the eleven year old, but I didn't know how else to respond. She looked a little disappointed that I didn't answer her question directly, but when she replied, "Okay," I knew she understood.

I entered Kathleen's room and it was like walking into a princess's room. It was purple and pink and filled with posters and photographs. I started to look at some of the pictures in frames when I came across a scrapbook on her desk. I flipped through the pages and found a couple of pictures of the entire Stabler family. I found some of just the kids, her and Elliot, and I found one of her ballet dancing and then another one of her on stage singing. I tried to hold back my emotions.

Then I came across photos of her and her friends. 'Me and Greg,' read one of the captions at the bottom of a photo and another one read, 'Love Birds'. I could tell that it was that kid, Phillip. He even looked like a scum-bag in the picture.

I put the scrapbook back on the desk, realizing I probably wasn't going to get anywhere with it. I began to search through her desk drawers when I found an address book. 'Bingo,' I said aloud to myself. I flipped through it and found addresses and phone numbers for Greg and Philip.

After looking around some more and realizing that there was nothing new, I made sure that everything was where I found it, walked out of the room, and closed the door behind me. As I made my way down the stairs, I could hear crying. I knew it was a woman, but I couldn't make out who. I heard Kathy's voice trying to be assuring, so I knew it wasn't her. Maureen came to mind.

I walked out, trying not to make a big entrance. I found Kathy with Maureen in her arms who was letting every emotion run free. Elliot approached me.

"Did you find anything, 'Liv?"

"Yeah, I found her address book. You don't mind if I bring it down to the precinct, do you?"

"No, of course not." Elliot looked over his shoulder at his crying family. "How about I walk you out?"

I nodded, although I felt that he should've stayed in his house. We walked out the door and I started to walk to the car when I realized that Munch and Fin had taken it when they went back to the station house. Elliot noticed this as well.

"I'll give you a ride."

"Don't worry about it, Elliot. I'll get a cab," I said. I didn't want him leaving his family.

"No, I'll drive you. I knew you'd forget that Munch and Fin took the car. I already told Kathy. She says that I need time to think right now, anyway."

"No, you need time with your family. Don't worry about me, Elliot."

"I'm worrying about it, Olivia. So, get in the car," he said with finality. We walked to the car and slipped in. He began to drive and we remained silent until we reached the precinct.

He stopped right outside the building's door.

"Goodnight, 'Liv. Thanks for coming down," he said, his voice dripping with tiredness and worry.

"It's no problem, Elliot. Goodnight," I said as I got out of the car. I turned around before I closed the door. "Listen, Elliot, I know that it's against policy, but I'll keep you updated in every aspect of the case as much as I can. I promise that we're going to catch this guy. I promise."

He shook his head imperceptibly. "Thanks, Olivia."

I closed the door and walked up the building's steps. I knew that I had two people to interview tonight. I knew it was late, but I didn't care. Elliot's family obviously wasn't going to get any sleep tonight, why should other people have that luxury? We had a ticking clock and I didn't care how many people I had to wake up to beat it.

I also knew that I wasn't going to get any sleep, either.

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a/n – What do you think so far? It's going to get better, but just give it time. My next chapter I'm thinking about putting into Munch's POV. Tell me how I'm doing and leave me a review. Please? adios, Jessica.


	3. Disassociation

Title: _One of Their Own _

Author: SVUFanatic611

Rating: PG

A/n: Chapter 3 up! Well, I got my email back up, so if you have any comments, you can actually send them to me. I read your reviews and well, it was pretty unanimous. This one's going to be in Munch's POV. I was a little nervous. I'm not too good at Munch speak, so I tried my best. I hope you like it.

Disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

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**SVU Squadroom  
Same Day (****Dec. 4, 2003****)  
-****10:23pm-**

_John Munch's POV _

When Olivia told me it was Elliot's address, I was left speechless and, trust me, that's a big deal for me. I've always been able to come up with some sort of clever, witty retort, no matter what the situation might be, but I just couldn't find any words for this one.

Maybe because there was nothing to laugh about. Maybe because this one had hit not just _close_ to home, but right on the target. This one hit home like a ton of bricks. This child I knew. This child was one of our own.

Olivia, Fin, and I headed over to Elliot's house and, before we left, I caught a glimpse of a picture on Elliot's desk. It was a photo of Kathleen, professionally taken. She looked like an angel. Her smiling face almost brought me to tears, but I hid my feelings well. I was never one to cry. I knew it wouldn't be the first time I would have these kinds of feelings on this case. I knew the only way I was going to successfully contribute to the investigation was to disassociate myself.

We arrived at their house, and when Olivia told us that _she_ was the one who needed to talk to Elliot, I was a little relieved.

I knew Elliot was feeling one of two ways – one: whether he was a raving father, demanding to know where his daughter was and handing out commands like he was a Navy sea captain, which wouldn't be completely off character for Elliot, or, two: he was in complete shock. In such shock, that he was numb. I guess I could understand that feeling. There are times when you're just beyond tears – when you become so numb, that it is impossible to cry or to feel anything in general. I knew that either one had to be dealt with in a special way and Olivia was equipped with dealing with each one.

We walked in the house and I immediately knew how Elliot was feeling. He was beyond tears. He was in shock. Before I could even say anything beyond 'hello' my cell rang. It was Cragen, telling me that, as much as he hated to take us away from the case at hand, we had a lead on a case Fin and I had been working on for about two months. I told Fin, and although I knew he was feeling like he was abandoning our colleague, we both knew Olivia was ready to deal with it on her own. It was probably for the best.

Fin and I drove to the station house. We didn't have too much to say to each other. Really, what could we say?

"We should've been allowed stay," I said to my partner.

"Olivia can handle it. Plus, he probably doesn't want too much of a crowd. I know Liz and Dickie don't know anything."

"How do you know that?"

"Liz kept givin' me weird looks, like I wasn't supposed to be there or something. If she knew, she would've expected us. And what Liz doesn't know, Dickie doesn't know."

I nodded. Maybe he was right. "She's probably already figured it out by now. That girl's too smart for her own good. She'll probably end up working for the government. The world isn't going to waste a brain like that. I bet they're going to train her and everything."

He laughed a little. I was back to my regular self; making witty comments, always lightening a mood. "Sure, Munch, keep thinking that."

Our conversation was terminated by our arrival at the precinct. We walked into the building, took off our coats, and met up with Cragen.

"Hey, guys. How are things going over there?"

We both gave mediocre answers. "Elliot looks like hell, and we can just leave how Kathy looked out of the conversation," I said.

"Olivia is there now," my partner pointed out.

He nodded and moved onto the case at hand. "Well, we got a lead on Sanchez. Eyewitness puts him at this address," he began, handing me a piece of paper. "She said that she saw cocaine and marijuana. He could be dealing."

"Are we going to have to call in Narcotics?" Fin asked. I had hoped not. I hated when we had to call on other precincts for help. Everyone thinks that all cops and precincts get along; that it doesn't matter about who catches the bad guys, as long as they're put to justice. Whatever they're drinking or smoking, I want some of it. We were already thought of as the scum of the NYPD. Why make it worse by proving that we couldn't handle a few drug dealers without calling for help?

"I don't know," replied my captain. "I'll call over there and see what they say."

Before we could say more, Olivia walked in. She looked just as tired as the Stablers did. I didn't know if it was because she hadn't been to sleep in twenty hours or because of the emotional toll the case was already starting to take on her…take on all of us.

I got up, moved to the coffee pot, and poured her a cup. It was something Elliot always did, but because he wasn't there, I figured I'd take over the responsibility for now.

"Here," I began, pushing the cup toward her. "You need this. It's gonna be a long night."

She smiled. "Thanks, John," she said, just a little absent-mindedly. I could tell something was bothering her.

"Penny for your thoughts?" I asked, hoping she'd give in.

"Not even worth that much," she answered.

"Well, then you're getting a fair profit. You wanna talk?"

"I just…it was hard seeing Elliot like that," she admitted.

"How are they holding up?"

"They're better than I'd expected, but still…their daughter is missing. They're pretty distraught."

I didn't reply. I didn't know how to. I could tell the effects of the case were beginning to return. Thank God, if there really was a one, she spoke up again. "So, what did the captain call you back down here for?"

"We got a lead on the Sanchez case. Witness claims she saw drugs inside the apartment."

"So, I'm guessing we're going to have to call in Narcotics."

Cragen came out of his office with a somewhat of a disappointed look on his face.

"What's up, Cap'?" she asked.

"I just got off the phone with Narcotics. They said they've been investigating Sanchez for the past month. We can't go in."

"What about the rape charges?" Fin asked.

"They said that he'd probably get more for the drug charges than with the rape case, but…"

"That's bull. He needs to get every available year we can jam up his ass."

"Listen, Fin, if you let me finish, I could tell you what else they said. From what I hear, they've got a couple of rookies on the case. They didn't think that it was going to get as far as it did. It was supposed to be something to keep them busy. Now that it's gotten to this point, they need somebody with experience, but all their other veterans are assigned on other equally important cases. Now, Fin, they said that if you are willing to lend a hand and take the lead on the case, they'll let us interrogate him about the rape and we might be able to add in the charge. You in?"

My partner considered it for a minute. "Isn't this a little unorthodox?"

"You wanna catch this guy?"

"Yeah," he replied with a little uncertainty.

"Than get on the phone and tell them you're on your way."

"Captain, what about Kathleen's case?" Olivia spoke up. We all knew where her thoughts were.

"You and Munch are now on the case. Try to keep your questioning under the radar, okay? An SVU detective's daughter has been kidnapped and has become the squad's newest case. The press is going to be all over it. I can already see the headlines."

Olivia and I nodded to each other. "So, where does this case take us first?"

"Well, we have two people to talk to, her best friend, Greg Dean, and her ex-boyfriend, Phillip O' Brian."

"Ah…ex-boyfriend. Reminds me of the term, 'ex-wife'."

She tried to laugh, but she couldn't. She wasn't doing a good job of disassociating herself. But, can you blame her?

"Alright, well, let's get going. We can't waste time," I said, as we walked out of the building and into the car.

**O' Brian Residence  
-****10:37pm-**

We arrived at the teen's house and walked up to the door. We knocked and a woman of about 40 years old answered.

"Hello? Can I help you two?"

"Yes, I'm Detective Benson, and this is Detective Munch. We'd like to speak to Phillip. Is he home?"

"Of course he is," she started, in an annoyed voice. "Do you two officers realize that it is about 10:30? What can be so important that it can't wait until morning?"

I took control of the comment, knowing if Olivia did, she might lose it. "We have watches, Miss. We know it's past your bedtime, but a girl was kidnapped and we have a ticking clock. We think Phillip might be able to help us. Can we please just talk to him?"

She gave us an awkward look and reluctantly invited us in. "His room is upstairs, first door on your left."

We followed her directions and made our way to his room. I banged on the door, trying to make some sort of audible knock over the blaring stereo. After no answer, we opened the door, and walked into his room. We was sitting at a computer, looking at some 'interesting' pictures. Kids were accessing pornography easier and easier these days.

"Well, well, well, what _would_ your mother say if she found out her little boy is all grown up?" I said, startling him. He tried to exit the program, but he wasn't exactly the quickest boy on Earth.

"What d'ya want?" he asked, in a defensive voice.

"For children to have a good grasp of the English language."

Olivia wasn't in the mood for my little remarks. "We're here to talk to you about Kathleen Stabler."

His face changed into a disgusted look. "What d'ya wanna know about the bitch?"

I tried to contain my anger toward the kid. The way he tossed around the word just didn't sit well with me.

"Well, let's begin with why you're calling her a bitch," she replied.

"She broke it off with me. _Nobody_ breaks _anything_ off with me."

"Is that _it_? We heard you roughed up a locker pretty well after she broke the news."

"I got a little angry. I'm fine now. She's not worth it anyway."

"Really?"

"Yeah, really. I can get so many other girls who are willing to give me whatever I want without my begging or persuasion," he said, with an evil smirk. I tried hard to not to punch the sick son of a bitch.

"So, you wanted a sexual relationship with Kathleen and she wasn't going to give it up, was she?"

"Said that she wasn't ready. Her father would get so mad if he even found out. I told her to grow some balls. If she really loved me, she wouldn't have cared."

"So, it's safe to say she didn't love you?"

"I guess," he said with a shrug. "It's too bad; she was a nice piece of ass." I couldn't stand it anymore. I couldn't stand the way he was talking about Kathleen. I lunged at the kid, throwing him up against the wall. I wasn't doing a very good job of disassociating myself.

"I don't ever want to hear you talk about her like that again," I said, with gritted teeth.

"John…" Olivia started, trying to persuade me from causing trouble. I ignored her attempts.

"You hear me, you arrogant, selfish, little twerp!?" His face was one of complete fear and he didn't reply.

"John, come on, get off of him. Don't do anything you're going to regret," Olivia started up again, putting her hands on my arms.

I stared into his eyes and they were empty. He didn't care about anything that was going on. I let go of him, with a little push, causing him to fall back against the wall. I tried to control my emotions and backed away from the sociopath.

Olivia decided to end the questioning. "Thanks for your time, Phillip."

We walked out of the room and we let ourselves out. "What was that all about, John?" she asked as soon as we got outside.

"I just hate kids like that."

"Well, so do I, but you can't lunge at every single one that pisses you off. It's not going to help."

"I'm sorry, it's just…"

"Just think before you act next time. It's my ass, too."

"I'll make sure it's covered, don't worry. I promise I'll back off."

We got in the car and Olivia told me where we were off to next: the Dean residence.

Disassociating myself was going to be harder than I thought…

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a/n – well, how did I do portraying Munch? I'm not that great with him. Tell me what you think…please? Until next chapter, Jessica.


	4. 20 Questions

Title: _One of Their Own _

Author: SVUFanatic611

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

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**Dean Residence  
December 4, 2003  
-****10:42pm-****  
**  
Olivia and Munch proceeded to drive to Greg Dean's house. Olivia was still a little pissed at John. _'How could he just go off like that? That's not like him at all. Does he not see that he is going to get in serious trouble for something like that sooner or later?'_

"So, do you think Phillip did it?" Munch asked, breaking any sort of comfortable silence that had existed.

"I don't know," Olivia answered a little reluctantly.

"I don't think he did it," Munch said, but still not sorry for roughing the boy up a little.

"Why don't you think so?" Olivia asked. _'If he's going to cross off a suspect, he better have a damn good reason…especially for this one.' _

"Well, for starters, he's not exactly the brightest bulb in the box…"

"That doesn't mean he didn't kidnap her. We've both had our share of stupid criminals," Olivia interrupted, preparing to argue.

"He's not smart enough to do this sort of planning. He's not the type to plan ahead. We know this was premeditated, or pretty well thought out, hence the note to Elliot. If she broke up with him yesterday, he had no real time to think things through. There's no logical way he could've done it."

"Maybe he's smarter than he was letting on. We shouldn't eliminate him as a suspect."

Munch noticed the irritation in her voice. He knew she wanted this case solved. She always got like this when she was tired, hungry, and on a mission to find a criminal. It wasn't a good mix.

"Olivia, it's early in the investigation. We don't have _any_ suspects. You saw how nervous he was when we saw him looking at porn. I think he would've been a little more jumpy if we were talking about a girl he was hiding."

Olivia jumped at the beginning of his comment, not hearing the second part. "Well, our 24-hour clock started awhile ago. We _should_ have a damn suspect!"

"Calm down, Olivia. I'm just trying to figure this out. If you want to vent, then fine. Go ahead, vent, but don't expect me to just sit here and not do my job. We're a team. Just remember that."

Olivia took a deep breath, looking hard at the road. "I'm sorry, John. I guess I'm letting this case get a little too close to me."

"I understand, Olivia. You're not the only one feeling that way."

She looked over at him and gave a weak smile. "Thanks."

Before Munch could respond, they arrived at the Dean's. It was a quaint house, a little run-down. Weeds covered the front yard, the lawn was shabby and paint was peeling off the walls and doors.

"Good to see they cleaned up for our arrival," Munch commented. Olivia didn't say anything and walked to the door with John at her side. As they got closer, both of them could hear a male voice yelling. Olivia knew the man yelling was inebriated. She had grown up with that tone of voice. Olivia pounded on the door.

A young boy of about sixteen answered the door. He had brown hair and he looked a little thin to Olivia. "Can I help you?" he asked, sticking his head out from inside the house.

"Are you Greg Dean?"

"Yes, what can I do for you?" Greg answered, being as polite as he could.

"I'm Detective Munch and this is Detective Benson. We know it's late and we hate to disturb you, but we'd like to talk to you about Kathleen Stabler."

"Kathleen? Is she okay?"

"You know, I was going to ask you the same thing," Olivia chimed in. "What's going on in there?"

The boy's face became an expression of worry. "Um…nothing…nothing's going on."

"It doesn't sound like nothing," Munch said, looking into the boy's eyes.

"It's nothing, really," he started, trying to get the detectives to stop the third degree. "You said you wanted to talk about Kathleen. Is she okay?" he asked, walking out of the house and closing the door behind him.

Olivia let go of the subject for the moment. "We don't think so," she said. "Somebody kidnapped her."

"Kidnapped? When?" he asked, with genuine worry in his voice, as he moved to the swinging bench on the porch and sat down.

"We were hoping you could help us with that," Olivia asked, taking a seat next to him. "We heard you went to the library with her earlier this afternoon."

"Yeah, we did. We had to look up facts for a paper we were doing."

"What time was that?" Munch asked.

"Umm…we got to the library around four and left a little after five. When I called her that night around seven, her dad said she wasn't there, but she told me she was going straight home. She said her father wanted her to get back."

"Where did you go?" Olivia asked.

"I went home," he answered. He was beginning to feel guilty. "I should've walked her home like I promised," he said softly.

"Listen, this isn't your fault," Olivia said, trying to comfort him. "You couldn't have prevented what happened."

Greg didn't have a chance to respond. He heard his father beginning to rant again. "Listen, I've gotta get back in there."

"Just one more question: Do you know anyone who would want to hurt Kathleen?"

"Have you talked to her ex-boyfriend? His name is Phillip O' Brian. They broke up yesterday and he was pretty pissed. But, that's the only person I can think of. She was…er…_is _like Ms. America. She's smart, pretty, popular, and caring. She gets along with everyone, even the most unpopular people. Nobody I know well would do something like this."

The boy walked inside and closed the door behind him. The yelling still continued but subsided a little.

"Well, I guess we found out what he was hiding," Olivia said with a heavy sigh.

"What do you mean?"

"When Kathy mentioned him, she said she always felt he was hiding something when he was around her. This has got be it." Olivia paused, contemplating the situation. "Well, what should we do?" she asked.

"You mentioned an address book you got from her room. Let's go check that out," Munch said.

"Yeah, I know that. I meant about him," she said pointing toward the door. "What should we do about him?"

"Well, we can't bang down the door because we hear yelling. We have no obvious proof of abuse. How about we go to the precinct and I'll look into any abuse accusations coming from this address while you check out the address book. We can check out the school in the morning. It's got to be closed at this time of night."

Olivia sighed, giving a look at the door. "Alright, as long as you drive. I might run us off the road."

"Wow."

"'Wow' what?"

"Fin doesn't normally trust me driving."

Olivia laughed a little, went down the stairs, and slipped into the passenger seat. Munch followed and drove them back to the precinct in silence.

**SVU Squadroom  
-****10:57pm-**

"So, how are you doing with the address book?" Munch asked Olivia after she had been searching for about five minutes.

"Well, let's just say Kathleen is one of the most meticulous high school students I've ever seen. For each of her friends she has listed, she has their first, middle, and last name, an address, phone number, cell phone number, and email address. I guess we'll get more specific with who she hung out with at the school tomorrow. Did you look up any abuse accusations from the Dean house?"

Munch saw how worried she was becoming for Greg. "I've got zip. Maybe he was just yelling, Olivia. Yelling doesn't indicate abuse. It indicates that certain parents don't know how to talk to their kids."

She sighed, taking it as an answer she didn't like. "Yeah, maybe you're right. How about you get some sleep? There's not much we can do right now and we've got a big day tomorrow. You need your rest; you look tired."

"Isn't that the pot calling the kettle black? Come on, Olivia. I'm not the only one who needs some shut-eye."

"I can't sleep. I won't be able to."

Munch realized it would be useless fighting with her. "Alright, suit yourself then, but if you fall asleep while talking to somebody, your ass is mine."

Olivia stayed at her desk, flipping through the address book, wishing she could go to the school now.

**Norman**** Thomas**** High School****  
****December 5, 2003****  
-****8:03am-**

"Hi, can I help you?" asked the woman at the front desk.

"Yes, actually you can. I'm Detective Benson and this is Detective Munch, NYPD, Special Victims Unit," began Olivia. "We were wondering if we could have a minute with the principal."

"Can I ask what it's about?"

"Kathleen Stabler."

"Kathleen? Is everything okay? Is she in trouble?"

Olivia looked back at John. She really didn't want to go into any sort of detail. "That's what we need to find out. It would really help if we could talk to the principal. The sooner, the better."

"She's got a free minute right now. I'll tell her you need to see her."

She left the desk and dialed the extension to Mrs. Leonard, the principal. After a few words, she turned back to Olivia and John.

"She can see you right now. Her office is down that hall, second door on your right."

"Thank you."

They followed the directions and found the office door open.

"Good morning, Detectives. I'm Mrs. Leonard. I understand you want to talk to me about Kathleen."

"Yes, we do."

"First of all, I will only cooperate with you if you cooperate with me. I'll answer your questions if you answer mine, and I only one have to start off with," she stated, firmly, walking up from her desk and shutting the door.

Olivia, taken back by her straight forwardness, answered hesitantly. "We can only answer so much because it is an open police investigation, but we'll try our best."

"It's not often I have two NYPD officers come to my office and ask me about one of my best students. I want to know exactly why you're here."

John, deciding that it was best to just tell the truth, answered her. "Kathleen's missing. We need to talk to some of her friends and we were hoping you could help us out with that."

Mrs. Leonard seemed surprised and answered in shock. "I'll help you in any way possible."

"You said Kathleen is one of your best students," Olivia commented.

"She is, academically speaking, of course. I mean, that's the only reason she was ever in my office. I like to offer congratulations to my scholars in person. I was constantly asking to see her in my office to offer her recognition."

"Can you name some people she hangs around with?"

"Well, I see her a lot with Greg Dean, but that's about it. She's a sweet girl who is always nice to everyone. I'm sure she has more friends."

"Have you noticed any change of behavior in Kathleen? Did she mention anyone bothering her?"

"I honestly haven't spent enough time with her to find out. But, one person she would've talked to if she had any real problems would be Mrs. Johansson."

"Where can we see her?"

"Her office is just around the corner. I'll introduce you."

Mrs. Leonard led the detectives to the office and introduced the woman to them.

"I've got a meeting. I'm sorry I couldn't help you any further, Detectives," Mrs. Leonard said, excusing herself.

"Thank you for your time," Olivia said, then turning her attention to Mrs. Johansson. "Mrs. Johansson, we were wondering if Kathleen Stabler had come to talk to you at all recently."

"Actually, she had, about a week ago."

"We understand that what she said is privileged, but whatever you can help us with would be greatly appreciated."

"I'm not a child psychologist, Detectives. I just try to get the point across to the students that if they need anyone to talk to, I'm here. Nothing is really privileged; however, I do promise my students the utmost confidence."

"Like I said, anything you could share would be great."

She sighed and gave into the detectives. "Kathleen came to talk to me about her boyfriend, Phillip. She said that he was beginning to become quite aggressive, but she was afraid what he would do if she broke up with him. I told her that she had to get out of the relationship. I wasn't sure if it would come to the point or not, but I was afraid he was going to become physical. It wouldn't be completely out of character for the young man."

"And how did she respond to that?" Olivia asked.

"She agreed and asked what the best way to break it off would be. I told her there was strength in numbers and to take a friend to go with her. I know the boy wouldn't try anything if there were witnesses."

"Do you know anyone she might have asked?"

"Well, Greg Dean is a good friend, but I saw her come to my office with Gabby Lawson. I've seen them together on campus a lot. Maybe you should talk to her."

"When can we do that?" Munch commented.

"We can pull her out of gym class, but it can't be for too long."

"Of course, we wouldn't want to keep her from her dodgeball studies."

Mrs. Johansson rolled her eyes, picked up her phone and called the front desk to get Gabby out of class. Within minutes, she came in with nervousness written all over her. "Someone said you wanted to talk to me, Mrs. Johansson," she started, trying to keep her eyes off the detectives.

"Actually, these two want to talk to you and they'd appreciate the complete truth, Gabby. Now, I'm going to leave you three alone to talk."

She walked out, closing the door behind her, and Gabby took a seat on the sofa against the wall. "Well, what do you want?"

"Are you and Kathleen good friends?" Olivia started, in her gentlest voice, trying to make the girl comfortable.

"Yeah, we are. Why?"

"We just need to know if she had talked to you about anyone who had threatened her or had been bothering her."

"Well, there's Phillip O' Brian, her ex- boyfriend, but other than that…nope. Kathleen's a real nice girl. She doesn't have any real enemies."

"Have you noticed any change in Kathleen's behavior?" Munch spoke up.

"Well, no. She seemed kinda stressed, but she's always like that. She's involved in a lotta things. But she seemed even more uptight than usual."

"Do you think it was because of what was happening with Phillip?"

"I guess," she said with a shrug of her shoulders. "But I don't wanna speculate about why she was feelin' the way she was."

"Well, thanks for your time, Gabby. We appreciate it." Olivia said with Munch's silent agreement.

After Gabby left, Olivia and Munch let themselves out of the office and walked toward the front desk.

"Okay, everyone we've talked to says that Kathleen is some sort of goddess who is practically perfect in any way. Why would someone want to hurt her? I mean, it's not like we have much to go on," Olivia said, stating the obvious.

"Except for the fact that everyone we talked to had another thing in common. They all mentioned Phillip."

"Do you wanna chat with him again?"

"Love to," said Munch, smirking.

"But let's keep hands to home, shall we?" Before Olivia got any further, her cell phone rang. She answered as Munch went to the front desk to pull out Phillip.

"Benson," she answered.

"Olivia?" came a scared voice from the other line.

"Yes, who is this?"

"It's…It's…It's me…Liz," she replied, through her tears.

Olivia set aside her questions of how Liz got her cell phone number, and focused on the girl.

"Liz, what is it? Is everything okay?"

"No! Everything's not okay! Kathleen's gone! You gotta help us, Olivia! Please?"

Olivia's heart sank and she tried to contain her emotions. "I'm trying my best, sweetheart. I really am."

"You promise she's gonna come home?"

Olivia thought before she made any real promises. "Honey, I can't promise anything, but Munch and I are trying our best and we're doing really well." _'Okay, so you lied a little, Olivia.'_

"Olivia! You _gotta_ promise! I want Kathleen back!"

"I know you do, Liz. I want her back, too. I really am trying," Olivia answered, holding tears back.

Liz seemed to calm down and she sniffled her tears away. "You really are trying?"

"Yes, we really are trying and I _can_ promise you that."

"Okay…"

"Liz, where are you right now?" Olivia asked, growing worried for another Stabler girl's well being.

"I'm in my dad's office. He said I could stay home today. I actually gotta go. My mom is calling me for breakfast."

"Alright. Call me if you need anything, okay?"

"Okay. Thanks, Olivia."

They exchanged good-byes and hung up.

"Who was that?" Munch asked, coming up from behind her.

"Liz. Liz Stabler."

"Is she alright?"

"Elliot and Kathy told her and Dickie this morning. She's pretty shook up."

"Poor kid," said Munch softly.

Trying to get off the subject, Olivia spoke up, "So, did we get Phillip out of class?"

"Yeah, he's on his way. They said we could use Mrs. Johansson's office again."

"You ready?"

"Are you trying to tell me that you want me to sit this one out?" he asked as he raised an eyebrow.

"I'd think it'd be best."

"Alright. I'm actually going to take a look at Kathleen's locker."

"Okay, good luck."

"Yeah, see you in a bit."

Munch left and Olivia saw Phillip round the corner. _'Here we go…' _she thought

---

A/N - I want to thank all of those who have reviewed so far! Your reviews are invaluable! If you have reviewed, then you have a shout out, but if I have forgotten you, I hope you can forgive me for forgetting you in the first place and then let me know so I can get you up there!

_Meghan-the-Melancholy_ – Trust me, I don't hate you! I actually appreciate you taking the time to _constructively_ review my story, because I know you don't like doing that, as you stated. So, thanks for that! I would rather have someone leave me a review that tells me what I could do to improve than have someone lie to me and tell me that every part of it is great and have me go on writing in the same (maybe wrong) way. So thank you for your honesty, it's always something I appreciate (as an author and a person) and, again, I don't hate you! )

_Lauren, Kathryn, Vertigo Mac, aserene, Diane, Coz, ZILENABLACK, Maya Beebop, Natalie, __Tracy__, SammieJo, Cartly_ – Thank you all for your kind words! I feel so loved! I'm glad you like my story (and enough so that you'd take your time to review it). They mean so much to me and I don't know if you know how much they cheer me up after a bad day at school or something. So, thank you and I hope you enjoy the upcoming chapters!

Last, but definitely not least, _Singing Daisy_ – Thanks so much for your kind words about being a goddess! I sent you an email, but I don't know if you got it or not. I hope you did! Enjoy the upcoming chapters!

I've got two questions for you guys: 1. Whose POV would you like to see next? 2. Inspiration is coming to me for a sequel for _Finally, I Know_. I was thinking of doing the story from Olivia's POV. What do you guys think? Would you read it, or should I keep it as it is?

Well, thanks for reading, and until next chapter, Jessica.


	5. Game of Clue

Title: _One of Their Own _

Author: SVUFanatic611

Rating: PG-13 for some language

Disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

---  
**Norman Thomas High School  
Same Day (****December 5, 2003****)  
-8:17am-**

_Olivia Benson's POV _

"What do you want? I thought I answered all your questions," the little weasel said in a defensive tone.

"I've only got a few more," I replied. I was trying to be as polite as I possibly could. He was probably the missing link and I couldn't to afford to lose his information just because I decided to PMS on his ass.

"I don't wanna talk to you or that partner of yours."

"One: he's not my partner and two: he's not going to be talking to you. It's just you and me."

"I don't know…"

"You know, Phillip, it looks really suspicious when a person won't talk to the police when it _could _clear him…especially if he says he's innocent," I tried to persuade him. If I didn't talk to him and get _something_, I didn't know where to go next.

He looked at me, trying to make his decision. I hope he didn't pop a brain cell trying to think too hard.

"Alright, I'll talk to you, but if that guy shows up, I'm through."

I don't know why this kid was so scared of Munch. Oddly enough, I guess John did make a good intimidator when he wanted to. It's always the quiet ones, I guess.

I lead him to Mrs. Johansson's office and we both took our seats.

"Alright, Phillip, where were you yesterday between 5pm and when we came to your house?"

"Home," he answered with an annoyed sigh in his voice. I wanted to kick the crap out of him right then and there; he was already getting an attitude.

"Is there anyone who can corroborate that?" I hoped 'corroborate' wasn't too big of a word for him.

"I was home since four and my mom came home around 4:30."

"Phillip, I'm going to be honest with you. It's not looking good for you right now."

"Whad'ya mean?"

"Well, everyone I've talked to said that you were beginning to get aggressive and possessive with Kathleen and that you were pretty pissed when she broke up with you. That doesn't mean anything good in my book."

"I already told you. I was pissed for a little, and then I realized that I could do better than the bitch."

"Before we go any further, that's what got you in trouble with the other detective. She has a name. Use it. In case you've forgotten, it's Kathleen." I don't normally do that. Normally, I don't care what language they use. I'm not their mother and if they have a problem with another person, that's their problem. However, I was not about to stand there and listen to someone else call my partner's daughter a bitch. Maybe it was in respect for Elliot.

After he didn't say anything, I went on. "Now, did Kathleen ever mention to you someone that was bothering her?"

"Well, other than the occasional teacher that got on her nerves, no, she didn't."

"Any teacher that really got to her?"

"Well, there's one, Mr. Joe. He was her pre-calculus teacher."

I hated how he used past tense, but I couldn't dwell on it. "Yeah? What did he do?"

"Well, Kathleen is really smart, but math has never been her strong point. She talked to him about changing out of honors into a regular course, but he said that she was just refusing a challenge and pretty much pressured her into staying in the class. She asked for his help in trying to understand some of the material, but he said that it was her problem if she was struggling. He was constantly looking down upon her and condescending toward her. He hates women."

"So, it's safe to say she didn't like him."

"Yeah, she hated him."

"This Mr. Joe have a last name?"

"Blake."

"Do you think Mr. Blake would hurt Kathleen?"

"Well, maybe…"

I was in no mood to beat around the bush. "You're going to have to be more specific."

"Well, he's kind of an aggressive guy in general. He's a no-bullshit kinda guy. One time, he got into a kid's face because he didn't turn in his homework. The most he might've hurt Kathleen was emotionally, but I don't think he kidnapped her."

"What classroom is Mr. Blake's?" I asked. I was not about to let the judgement of a sixteen-year-old affect my job. I still had to talk this teacher.

"Room 145. It's next to the blue bulletin board. But, I can tell you right now that he didn't touch Kathleen."

I looked up from my notebook. "How can you be so sure?"

"I just…He's not capable of kidnapping…he hates kids…girls specifically. He wouldn't kidnap one."

"Leave that part up to me. Thanks for your time, Phillip."

"Yeah, no problem."

We both stood up and as I reached for the doorknob, he said something.

"Detective?"

"What is it?"

"I really hope you find her. I know I'm not the best person, but she didn't deserve what happened to her."

I felt his remorse was probably fake and he honestly didn't care what happened to Kathleen, but I just nodded. "I'll try my best to find her."

We both made our way out, and as we stepped out, I saw Munch waiting for me. Phillip scampered off in the other direction back to class and I approached him.

"So, how's the rodent?" he asked.

"Not too helpful. He denied he kidnapped her, but mentioned a teacher. He says that he probably didn't do it, though. How was the locker hunt?"

"Not too good. I went to the front office to get her locker number, but when I found it, it was pretty empty. No books, just an empty shelf and a couple pictures on the locker door."

Crap. But what did that mean? Did she switch lockers; maybe decide to share with someone? But if she did, why?

"Well, let's go talk to this teacher and see what he has to say," I said. We would figure out the locker thing later. I walked up to the woman at the front desk, asked where I could find Mr. Blake and, after some wandering, we finally got to his classroom. He was on his break and sitting at his desk, looking at papers.

We knocked and invited ourselves in. "Are you Mr. Blake?" I asked.

"Yes, who wants to know?"

"I'm Detective Benson and this is Detective Munch. We're from Manhattan Special Victims Unit. We need to talk to you about Kathleen Stabler."

"What about her?"

"Sir, where were you last night from 5pm to 7pm?"

"With my girlfriend. I treated her to dinner then we went to her place."

"What's your girlfriend's name?"

"Susan Marks. What is this all about?" he asked, his voice getting demanding.

"Mr. Blake, Kathleen Stabler was kidnapped last night," Munch answered for me.

"Kidnapped?"

"Yeah."

"But, why would you want to talk to _me_ about that?"

"We heard you and Kathleen didn't exactly have a relationship filled with respect; that she wanted out of the class, you wouldn't let her and you pressured her to stay."

"I'm sorry, Detectives, but that was blown out of proportion by whatever student told you that. She came to me, telling me that she wanted out of the honors class. Now, Kathleen is a bright girl, but I knew if she applied herself, she could pull off a B average for the quarter. She just wanted the easy A and when I told her this, she got defensive. I made a proposition. I asked her to stay in my class for another month, but she would have to study and work hard. If she wanted to leave after that month, I wouldn't put up a fight. She agreed."

"Did you help her with any of the material she was having trouble with?"

"She never asked. But, I can see why she wouldn't. If any of my students ask me for help, I require them to stay after school. From what I hear, she's some prima ballerina. I don't think she was willing to give up rehearsal for her studies. I saw Greg Dean helping her in study hall I monitored."

"Did you notice any behavioral changes with Kathleen?" Munch asked.

"Actually, I had. I saw her hanging around with people I normally wouldn't associate her with. But, it might be because she was dating Phillip O' Brian. He's Mr. Popularity."

"You knew she was dating Phillip?"

"I may be old, Detectives, but I'm not completely blind. He was all over her during the study halls I monitor."

"Do you remember any names of the people she was hanging around with?"

"Let's see…Siobhan Fanning, Shayna McKinney, Maggie Steins, and Lacy George."

"Where can we find them?"

"I believe they're all in gym class. They're slick girls who had their schedules changed so they were always in the same class."

"How do you know?"

"I double as the junior class guidance counselor."

"Well, thank you for your time Mr. Blake."

Munch and I made our way out of the class.

"Well, that wasn't completely useless."

I guess he was right. We did get at least four names, but I had a feeling none of them knew anything about this. "Yeah, but we still have to corroborate Phillip's alibi, as well as Joe Blake's."

"Yeah, how did his alibi turn out?"

"I have to call mommy in order to confirm, but I'm beginning to think he didn't do it."

We reached the gymnasium and when we walked in, we found most of the girls playing a heated game of volleyball, but then my eyes wondered to the four girls in the back, who had their own versions of their P.E. uniform on. They all had their shorts hiked up to their asses and their shirts were cut and tied to show off their stomachs. It brought back bad memories of my own high school gym class.

I guessed those four girls were the ones we were looking for. We approached the coach and asked for the girls. My guess was right; those were the girls. We pulled them out of class and talked to them. They didn't have much to say. Kathleen was a nice girl, good student, funny, and she was dating Phillip O' Brian for about a month. Nothing new. No behavioral changes, didn't mention anyone bothering her, didn't seem abnormally stressed. Again, nothing new. We were getting nowhere.

After we talked to everyone we could, we left, got into the car discussing the different people on the way, trying to eliminate people or trying to find someone, and headed to the precinct. We arrived and found at least fifteen cameras and reporters outside.

"Detectives!" they screamed at us, moving toward us. "Can you comment…" "What have you heard…" "Do you have a suspect…" "Where is Detective Stabler…" filled the air. Munch and I made our way through the crowd and finally made it inside the building where we left the rest of them outside.

"Who the hell leaked to the press?" I practically yelled at Cragen as Munch went to confirm the alibis.

"You tell me!" he retorted, causing me to check my tone.

"The only people we told were school personnel."

Before the conversation got any further, the phone rang.

"Cragen, Special Victims Unit," he answered. "No, I'm sorry, we don't have a comment at this moment." And with that, he hung up.

"Press?"

"What else?"

"Who could've told?" I asked, wanting to kill whoever did.

"Let's forget about them. If school personnel did tell, they obviously have no facts of the story. What did you get from the school?"

I wanted to be able to tell him we were closer to finding Kathleen, but I couldn't. "Nothing much, Cap'. Munch is on the phone right now confirming the alibis of the ex-boyfriend and a teacher."

"Teacher?"

"Yeah, we heard they had a confrontation. I don't think he did it, though."

"Guess what?" Munch asked, hanging up the phone and getting up from his seat. I was still in no mood to play around.

Cragen and I looked at each other. "We give up."

"Something about that Blake teacher rubbed me the wrong way, so I looked to see if he had any priors."

"And…?"

"Bastard's been charged with rape and domestic abuse."

"Did he do any time?" I asked.

"The women conveniently dropped all charges."

"What about his alibi?"

"I called Susan Marks, his girlfriend, and she says that they did go to her place, but they went out to an early dinner, and he left around five, the same time Kathleen was kidnapped."

So, this guy kidnaps her over a little argument about changing classes? "Well, what about Phillip's alibi?"

"Mom confirms it."

"Well, let's bring Blake in," Cragen said. "Ask him politely and if he refuses, use force."

"Captain, we don't have enough to cuff him," I said, trying to make sure that Don knew exactly what he was saying.

"He doesn't know that."

"The brass will. Aren't you just a little worried of what they might do?"

"Listen," Cragen said, looking me and Munch in the eye. "This one is for Elliot. If I, or any of us for that matter, had any kids, he'd do whatever he could and bend as many rules as he possibly could stand if one of them went missing. I have no trepidations about that. So, I'm going to do the same in return."

We nodded to each other and I understood what he was saying. We needed to get Kathleen back, no matter what it took and if we did get in trouble in the process, we'd deal with it…as a team. The only thing that mattered was this girl.

"Now, get out there and come back with Blake."

Munch and I grabbed our jackets, and as I turned around, a girl stood in the doorframe. She looked familiar, but I couldn't put my finger on it.

"Gabby?" Munch asked. Thank God he remembered. "What are you doing here?"

"There is something I need to tell you, but I didn't know if I should or not when you guys were at the school."

"What is it?"

"I heard you went through Kathleen's locker," she answered politely.

"Yeah, we did. Is there something you wanted to tell us about that?" I asked putting a hand on her shoulder and looking into her eyes.

"That's not her locker anymore. For the past two weeks, she shared one with me."

"Why?"

"Because her locker was right outside Mr. Blake's room. And after what happened…"

"What happened?"

"He threatened her."

"What do you mean he threatened her?"

"It was one time after class. See, during class Mr. Blake said something really degrading that was directed toward women. Well, Kathleen stood up to him and said something back. After class, he took her aside and said that if she ever did that again, he'd make sure to do something about it."

"How did she respond?"

"She didn't believe he would do anything, but she still didn't want to be around him. She asked to be in different classes not because she couldn't do the work, but because she hated being in his class. He told her if she didn't stay in the class, he'd do something drastic."

I looked up from the girl who was about to cry and turned toward Cragen.

"It's all the more reason to bring him in," he said.

I turned toward Gabby. "Did you skip class to come here?" She nodded. "Well, how about Detective Munch and I give you a ride back to school? Thank you for coming here."

We began to walk out when Cragen spoke up.

"Guys, remember what I said."

"Cap'? What do we do about the press?" Munch asked. I was actually wondering the same thing.

"Just do what you've been doing. Ignore them and don't tell them anything unless I've authorized it. Oh, and Gabby?" he started as the girl turned around. "I'd really appreciate if you didn't say anything to the press or talk to anyone about what you just said to us. Do we have your word?"

Gabby nodded. "Yes, sir, you have my word."

"Thank you."

We walked out and braced ourselves for the bitter cold wind and even more bitter reporters.

---  
A/n – well, sorry this is long, but I didn't know where to call it off. I hope you're enjoying this…my next update should be pretty soon…Thanks to all those who have reviewed so far. You guys are the best. To quote Singing Daisy, "SNAPS FOR THE REVIEWERS!" I love saying that too…well, until next chapter, adios! -Jessica


	6. Anything

Title: _One of Their Own _

Author: SVUFanatic611

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

---  
**Norman ****Thomas ****High School****  
Mr. Joseph Blake's Classroom (Room 145)  
****December 5, 2003****  
-****9:02am-**

"I don't understand why I have to go to your precinct. I didn't do anything wrong," said Joe Blake to Olivia and John.

"Well, there are questions we have to ask…" Olivia started, but she got cut off by Blake.

"Ask them here," he said, becoming more insistent.

"This really isn't the best place to do it. We have a lot to go through."

"I'm not going to leave."

Olivia tried to persuade him the same way she had with Phillip. "Sir, we understand that this could be an inconvenience, but it doesn't look good when someone doesn't talk to the police when it could clear him."

"And if you insist that you're innocent, what do you have to hide?" Munch added on.

"I didn't do anything wrong."

"Then come down to our precinct," Olivia said simply.

He looked up at the two detectives and sighed. "I have to go check with the principal to see if I can get out."

"We already talked to Mrs. Leonard when we first came back. She's fine with it. So, let's get going," Olivia said, making her way to the door.

**SVU Squadroom  
-****9:13am-**

Olivia and John led Blake to the interview room and asked him to wait. They went to find Cragen to tell him that he was there. They found him in the bullpen, watching the television in the corner.

"Cap, he's here. We got him to come without using force," Olivia started.

"I must say, Olivia's powers of persuasion are amazing," Munch commented.

Cragen looked away from the TV and his face looked pale. "Well, don't wait around here; go talk to him."

The room fell silent as every eye and ear fixated on the television.

"…but we have yet to hear anything from the detectives investigating the kidnapping of Kathleen Stabler, daughter of Detective Elliot Stabler with the Manhattan Special Victims' Unit. Sources say that the detectives have interviewed a couple of students and staff members at Norman Thomas High School, where the teenager attended. We will keep you updated as soon as more information is released," said the blonde reporting. "This is Molly Granger reporting for W-KBV news."

Olivia, Cragen, and Munch continued to stare at the screen until Cragen shut it off. "Well, you heard me; go talk to him," he said, not wanting to talk about what they just saw.

"Alright, Cap. If you wanna check anything out, we're in the interview room," Olivia mentioned blankly, while Cragen seemed to be gathering his thoughts, oblivious to what was going on around him. It seemed to Olivia that reality finally hit him.

Olivia and John made their way to the interview room. They entered and found Blake sitting at the table. Olivia started the conversation.

"Mr. Blake, we've got some things we need to clear up."

"What things?"

"Well, for starters, we need to discuss the threat you made against Kathleen," Olivia said.

"I _never_ made a threat against Kathleen."

"Really? Then why would someone say that you did?"

"I don't know. I'm not really the most popular teacher. Some student that probably has a failing grade in my class told you a false story to get revenge on me."

"You know, I didn't like a lot of my teachers, but I never heard of anyone getting revenge on them by falsely accusing them of verbal abuse," Munch added.

"Well, Detective, when you went to school, there were a lot of things that didn't exist; however, everybody would find them normal today."

"So, you really think this is just someone screwing around with us?" Olivia asked.

"It's got to be. I've never made a threat against a student."

"Alright, well can you explain your alibi?"

"What do you mean?"

"You told us when we first talked to you that you were out with your girlfriend from five until seven."

"I was."

"Try again, Joe," Munch said, getting into Blake's face. "We talked to Susan. She said you left at five."

Blake seemed to become intimidated. "I…I…I must've given you the wrong name by accident."

"What are you talking about?"

"I had another date…with Jenna Stark."

"So, you were cheating on Susan?"

He took a quick glance at each detective, and then looked down at the floor. "Yes," was all he managed to get out.

John and Olivia shared a glance. "We going to need her number to confirm your story, but you better not be lying to us, Joe," Munch said, remaining firm.

"I'm not lying to you!" he yelled.

"Then explain these," Olivia said to him, pushing the paper that listed his priors on it.

Blake took the papers and stared at them. "These are lies. The domestic abuse allegation was made by my ex-wife when I couldn't pay her alimony on time. She came to my house and started screaming her head off. The neighbor heard everything and thought I was beating her."

"Why didn't you or your ex-wife say anything when the police arrived?"

"I tried to explain to them, but because my ex was so pissed off, she didn't contest to anything the neighbor had said. It turned into a he said-she said and I guess they believed her over me. She came to her senses two days later."

"What about the rape charge?"

"I had sex with a woman. She wanted commitment, I couldn't give it to her, and she got pissed. She cried rape the next day."

"What did you do?"

"I told the cops the truth. But, because I had that domestic abuse count against me, they didn't believe me."

"What made her drop the charges?" Munch asked.

"The ADA told her that she was going to have to testify to make the case and she wasn't going to allow perjury in her case. I guess she got apprehensive about lying in open court."

"How convenient…"

"It's the truth! I don't know why we're talking about these ridiculous lies, but I didn't hurt Kathleen! I never touched her! I never threatened her!" Blake yelled, getting up form his seat, his voice rising with every syllable.

Before either detective could say anything, a knock came at the window. They knew what it meant and excused themselves. They made their way out of the interview room and met up with Cragen in his office, where Casey Novak was also present.

"What's up?" Munch asked.

"I figured I'd get you out of there and give him a minute to cool down," Cragen started. "What do you think of him?"

"I don't know, Cap. He seems to have an answer for everything," Olivia said.

"What about you, John?"

"I agree. It still feels like he's hiding something."

"Well, I can tell you right now that we don't have enough to arrest him. We need real physical evidence that he had anything to do with Kathleen's kidnapping," Casey chimed in.

"Do we have enough for a search warrant?" asked Cragen.

"Well, you said someone told you that Blake threatened Kathleen. You need to corroborate that, give a list of specific things you'll be looking for, and, even then, I'll be calling in a big favor."

"Can we put a sixteen-year-old girl whose tied up and frightened on the list of specifics?" Munch said, becoming extremely annoyed with the legal system.

Cragen ignored Munch's comment and moved on. "Alright, here's how we're going to play it. Munch, you said you think he's still hiding something. I want you to talk to him more, get that Jenna Stark's address, check his alibi, and then see if you can find anyone that can corroborate Gabby's story," he said, dismissing him. This left Olivia just standing there, waiting for her part. Before he could say anything to her, Casey spoke up.

"I'm gonna start working on that warrant. Call me if you get anything else."

They both said their good-byes and Olivia started to leave, but she stopped when the captain spoke up.

"Olivia," he began.

"What is it, Cap?" she asked as she turned around, looking at him expectantly.

"Kathy Stabler is here."

Olivia's face went pale quickly, wondering why Kathy was there. Her mind filled with innumerable questions.

"Did she say what she wanted?"

"Well, when I asked her if there was anything I could do, she requested your presence. So, I'm going to say she's looking for you."

"Alright…I'll be back soon."

When Olivia turned to leave, Cragen spoke up. "Olivia, I don't want to be rude, disrespectful, or anything like that, but you've got to help John sooner rather than later."

Olivia nodded. "I'll make it as quick as possible, Cap."

Olivia left, and when she walked out of Cragen's office, sure enough, Kathy Stabler was sitting at Elliot's desk, with what looked like the picture of Kathleen that Elliot had on his desk in her hands.

"Kathy."

"Olivia," she started, standing and putting the picture back on the desk.

"What is it, Kathy?" she asked gently.

"I wanted to know how things were going," she said, with a mix of pain and fatigue in her voice.

"We're doing the best we can. We're chasing a few leads." Olivia wanted to tell her everything, but her fear got the best of her. She couldn't bring herself to say that it was possible a teacher had kidnapped her daughter.

Kathy simply nodded, not knowing what to say. Olivia continued. "She's going to be okay, Kathy. We'll get her home," she said. A feeling of confusion overwhelmed Olivia. She kind of regretted saying what she just did. She didn't want to get Kathy's hopes too high. But, then again, Olivia wanted to believe it.

"I don't know, Olivia. As much as my husband doesn't want to believe it, I _do_ know the statistics. I know that kidnapped kids don't have a good chance of coming home…alive."

Olivia nodded, not knowing how to reply. She took a quick look around her, looking for her partner. "Where's Elliot?" she asked gently.

"He's…He's at home with the kids. I…I had to see how things were going," she stated with tears threatening to fall with every word.

Olivia remained silent, knowing that if Kathy was going to break down, she'd be there to offer what little solace she could. Then a man walked in. "Well…speak of the devil," she said softly.

Kathy turned around and found Elliot standing in the doorway with the twins in tow.

"Elliot? What are you doing here?" Kathy whispered.

"I…I couldn't stay at home without you. I need to be with you right now. _All_ of us need to be together right now," he said, gently putting a hand on each of her shoulders.

"Elliot…I…" Kathy wasn't able to finish. She fell into Elliot's arms, crying. Elliot held on tight to his wife, trying to control his own emotions. Pain was evident on the twins' faces, not knowing what to do, how to feel. After a tense moment, Elliot acknowledged Olivia.

"Olivia."

"Hey, Elliot."

"How are things going?" he asked, going into full-father mode.

"We're following the leads we're getting," she answered simply, with the same feeling she had when she said that to his wife.

"Olivia, please don't pull that crap on me. Tell me what's going on," he pleaded quietly, moving closer to her.

She sighed. "We've got one guy, but we're still checking up on things. We have nothing definite yet."

Elliot nodded, not knowing how to reply. "How's the press down here? Have you told them anything?" he asked anxiously.

"They're swarming outside, but we haven't talked to them."

"I had a feeling they would be…that's why I came in the other side," he said blankly. "They want to talk to us, but I don't know if we should."

"I…um…" Kathy started, finding her voice. "I…want to talk to the press."

Olivia remained calm and laid a reassuring hand on Kathy's shoulder. "Are you sure?"

Kathy nodded. "Yeah…it could get her back, couldn't it?" she asked, looking worriedly at Olivia.

Olivia let out a soft sigh. "I'm going to be honest, Kathy. Sometimes it does, but a lot of the times, the press can be more of a burden. They're like cats. You feed them once and they keep coming back."

"There's gotta be something I can do," she said in a hoarse whisper, due to her oncoming tears.

"Do you really want to go to the press, Kathy?" she asked, looking into her red, swollen eyes.

"I…I don't know."

"Elliot, what do you think? What do you want to do?" she asked gently.

"I don't know."

Olivia nodded. "Listen, I'm right there with you guys if you want to do this. I just have one suggestion." After both Stablers looked up, she continued. "Whatever you guys do, you gotta do it together, especially if you talk to the press. Anything that looks like there's discord in your household will make front-page news."

Kathy and Elliot shared a glance. "Do you think it'll help, Liv?"

"I honestly don't know, Elliot. You just gotta be prepared for anything…especially when it comes to reporters."

"I want to do it, El," Kathy spoke up.

Elliot nodded and glanced at Olivia. "You heard her. We've got a date with the press."

"Not yet, you don't," Cragen spoke up from his office doorway. "I'm coming with you."

"What do you mean?" asked Kathy.

"I've decided to call a press conference. It starts in five minutes. Why don't you guys just sit and catch your breath."

"Are you serious, Cap?"

"Absolutely. I wouldn't kid around with something like this."

"Cap, are you sure?" Olivia asked.

"It's getting down to the wire, Olivia. We need to do something," he replied.

"Alright…well, do you need me there?"

"We should be fine. Go find John and get to work," he said, firmly and professionally.

Olivia nodded, turned to look at her partner, his wife, and his two children, and started to leave.

"I'll keep you guys updated. I promise," Olivia said, making an exit. She didn't get far when she heard small footsteps run up towards her and felt a hand on her elbow. She turned around to find Dickie staring up at her. She knelt down to get to his eye level.

"Liz told me you're trying your best to find Kat. That's true, right?" he asked cautiously.

"I would never lie to you or your sister, Dickie."

"Thank you, Olivia." He stared at her for a moment and then hugged her, wrapping his arms around her neck. She returned the hug, letting a few tears fall from her stinging eyes. Liz started crying from where she was standing and when she saw the tears from Olivia's eyes, she ran up and joined the hug.

Liz and Dickie pulled away, causing the twins to see Olivia's face and the tears that stained it. Liz reached her shaky hand out and wiped them from Olivia's face. Olivia did the same to the twins and offered a weak smile. "It'll be okay, guys. Everything will be okay," she whispered, trying to offer comfort.

"Olivia," Cragen said, reminding her that she needed to get back to the case at hand. She looked up and acknowledged him.

"I gotta go, guys."

"Okay," they answered in unison. She got up from her kneeling position and gave another glance at Elliot and Kathy. She left to look for John by walking to the interview room, hoping he was closer to finding Kathleen than she was.

---  
Olivia silently slipped into the interview room to find John talking to Blake.

"…then you wouldn't mind writing down her address so we can confirm that," he said, referring to Jenna Stark's residence.

"I'll only give it to you if you promise to be discreet. She's got a husband and two kids."

"You know, you should really think about those things _before_ you kidnap and rape a teenage girl."

"I didn't kidnap _or _rape her!"

"Then give us Jenna's address!"

"Listen, we're not interested in your affairs. We're just trying to find Kathleen," Olivia stepped in. "We'll be discreet."

"Alright," he started, looking suspiciously at the two detectives. "Here it is." He took the notebook and pen on the table and jotted down the address.

"You better not be lying, Joe. If I find out that you've wasted our time, there will be hell to pay," Olivia said, getting into Blake's face, never breaking eye contact.

"Like I've told your partner a million times, I'm not lying to you," he replied through gritted teeth, handing her the piece of paper.

Olivia took it and she and John walked out simultaneously and closed the door behind them.

"Olivia, are you okay?" he said, realizing her red eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Olivia…"

"The twins…they…they just got to me," she answered reluctantly.

"Do you want to talk?"

"Look, John, I promised them that you and I are trying our best. Standing here and talking about the personal aspects of the case isn't our best and it sure as hell doesn't find Kathleen," she calmly. "After we've got Kathleen with her family, we can all talk until we're blue in the face. For the time being…I'm fine. I'm dealing."

Munch studied her face. "Alright. How about we go check out this Jenna Stark."

"Alright, let me get my coat."

She walked into the bullpen and the voice of her captain caught her attention. She turned, not to find him standing there, but to find the television on. On the program, showed Elliot and Kathy standing off on the side while Cragen spear-headed the press conference.

"…if you have any information concerning this case, we ask you to call the NYPD. You will remain anonymous, but we do need your information."

"Please…please help us bring her home. We need her here with us," Kathy said, her voice shaking. "The detectives are doing their best, but we need your help."

Olivia grabbed her coat and before leaving, she walked over to the television and shut it off. She stood, staring at the black screen, before John came in.

"Olivia, you ready?" he asked, knowing just what happened.

"Yeah…yeah, let's go," she said, taking her eyes off the screen. She knew she needed to get back to work.

**Stark Residence  
Upper East Side  
-10:17am-**

Olivia and John walked up to the neatly-kept house and rang the doorbell. A man in his thirties came to answer it.

"Hi, can I help you?"

"I'm Detective Benson and this is Detective Munch. Does Jenna Stark live here?"

"Yes, she does. I'm her husband. Why do you need to know?"

"Is she here now? We need to talk to her."

"About what?"

"I'm sorry, but we can't disclose that. We just need to talk to her."

He looked confused, but he complied. "Jenna! Some detectives are here to talk to you."

They walked in and saw Jenna. They talked to her and she had confirmed Blake's alibi. After trying to make sure she wasn't lying to them and covering for Blake, they let themselves out.

"Of course the bastard's alibi got confirmed. It's always the arrogant ones," Munch commented.

"Yeah…okay, where do we go from here?" Olivia asked.

"Back to the station. Maybe with Cragen's press conference, we've got something else to go on."

**SVU Squadroom  
-****10:25am-**

Olivia and John walked through the bullpen to find the swarm of people that had come to the aid of the unit and manned the phones.

"Anything new?" Cragen asked.

"Stark confirmed the bastard's alibi. We came back to see if anything new had come up. We need a new lead."

He wasn't lying. They needed something to go on. They needed anything.

---  
A/N – well, here's another long one. I know Cartly will appreciate it. ) I promise that at least half of the next chapter will be in Elliot's POV. I know some are waiting for Fin's chapter, but his is coming…don't worry. The next chapter will bring up alternative things that could've happened to Kathleen. I hope I'm staying up to par and you're enjoying it. Until next chapter, adios! -Jessica


	7. Promises and Prayers

Title: _One of Their Own _

Author: SVUFanatic611

Rating: PG-13

A/N: I apologize in advance for the screwed-up tenses. I've tried to keep it consistent, but it gets pretty sticky. Sorry if it's confusing. : (

Disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

---  
**Stabler Residence  
****Queens****NY****  
-****10:54am-**

_Elliot Stabler's POV _

"If it were one of my kids…"

That phrase always comes into mind while on the job. I often say it to victims' parents. "If it were one of my kids…"

I never thought it would become a reality. I never thought that the roles would reverse and I'd be the one sitting at home, waiting and wondering about my daughter's whereabouts and what she was enduring. I never thought I'd be the one crying. I never thought it would happen to me.

The ending to the phrase differs, depending upon the situation. One time, it ended with, "If it were one of my kids, I wouldn't want those images in my head." It was the case where I had to travel to Prague to catch the kiddie-rapist. The mother wanted to see the obscene photos that were taken of her daughter. Looking back now, I lied. The _only _thing I want to know was what was happening to my baby girl. If that's only evident through photographs, then so be it.

Another time, it ended with, "If it were one of my kids, I don't know what I would do." I've said that numerous times for different situations, but, God, that's the truth. I honestly never thought that I'd be the one going through it, so I never thought twice about what my course of action would be. Now that it has happened, I'm left confused, conflicted, and lost.

The only thing that compares to the difficulty of this situation was informing my two youngest children of it. Seeing the look on both of their faces was heart-wrenching to my already strained emotions. They just didn't know what to do, how to feel, how to react. I certainly can't blame them. I feel the same way.

Kathy's holding up better than I thought she would have. I know part of her wants to be strong, not only for me, but for the remainder of her children. I also know the other part wants to break down, cry her eyes out, and die…right here, right now.

I'm here, sitting on the porch swing in my back porch, staring at nothing in particular. I'm just wondering why this is happening to me and my family and waiting to hear from Olivia. She said that she'd keep us updated, but that doesn't mean she won't get side-tracked. I don't know whether her not calling is a bad thing or a good thing. It may be a bad thing because she might not want to call, not wanting to face the truth and tell me that she doesn't have any more leads. It may be a good thing because she may be out, catching the guy who has destroyed my family and, most of all, my baby girl and may not have the time to pick up the phone.

But, then again, Olivia would call if she found Kathleen, not matter what she was doing. So, maybe her not calling is a bad thing.

Kathy's inside, trying to keep herself busy. When we came back from the press conference, she quickly found something to do. The twins were calm for the first time in their short lives and weren't fighting. They entered with us and took off their jackets, actually hanging them up. Liz went running up the stairs and into her room, closing the door behind her. By the amount of sound that was coming from her room, I could tell that she had fallen against the door, crying. I even heard her throw something across the room. She's more like me than I thought.

Dickie watched his sister with a careful, watchful eye. He heard just as much as I had, but he didn't stand there like I did. He walked up the stairs cautiously, making his way toward her room and knocked on the door. After a few knocks and reassuring, pleading words, she opened the door, and fell into his arms. It was the only time in…well, eternity…that I saw her do that. Luckily, Dickie knew when to be serious and when to be ready for sibling rivalry. He didn't complain and openly accepted his twin's need for comfort. He stroked her hair and told her everything was going to be okay. Dickie was doing something to Liz that I wanted to do to Kathleen. I wanted to hold her in my arms.

Now, the twins are in their separate rooms, quiet as ever; Kathy's in the kitchen, wiping the counter and making coffee; Maureen's out and about somewhere, trying to clear her head; the press is knocking at my door, camping out in my front yard, and calling me twenty-four/seven; and Olivia…I only wish I knew what Olivia is doing, where she is, and how far she's getting.

"El?" asks Kathy, causing me to jerk out of my thoughts. She's standing just outside the door, leaning on the doorframe, holding a mug.

"Hmm?" I ask blankly.

"Here's some coffee," she says, walking toward me and pushing the mug in front of me.

"No thanks," I reply politely with a wave of my hand.

"Elliot, you look like hell. You haven't slept in about twelve hours. You haven't eaten. You've barely talked. You need something in you. Now, just take the coffee."

She reads each sentence as if she's reciting them off a list. I look at her and her eyes are filled with desperation. I take the mug to please her, placing it on my knee, but never taking a sip.

She stares at me for a minute and then takes a seat next to me, fixating her eyes on the same thing I am…nothing. I place my arm around her shoulder and she leans back in my grasp and I notice a few tears threatening to fall.

"The twins okay?" The question is meant, not for my own personal knowledge, but to break the awful silence between us.

"Dickie's trying to drown out everything with very loud music and Liz, last time I checked on her, she was still crying. She was holding onto that stuffed cheerleader bear that Kathleen got her."

I smile despite all that goes on. Liz loves that bear and I know Kathleen loved giving it to her. The mere thought of my girls gets me to smile.

"Don't act too happy," she says cautiously. I really shouldn't be smiling with what she just said about Liz.

"No…it's just…do you remember when Kathleen got that for Liz?" My smile is still glued on, remembering the events of Liz's cheerleading competition.

Kathy starts smiling, also recalling the experience. "Yeah…Kathleen really wanted to get her something, but didn't know what."

"But, we were on our way to the stadium and she made me stop the car because she saw it in the window and I almost became part of a three-car pile-up," I say, completing the adventure. We begin to laugh slightly, reminiscing about the rest of the day.

Our laughter fades gently into the winter air and we're slowly brought back to our somber aura. Kathy leans in closer to me.

"What are we going to do, El? If she doesn't come home, what are we going to do?" she asks, looking up at me with light, hazel eyes.

I hug her closer. "I honestly don't know, Kath. Maybe it's best we just think positive right now."

At this point, I'm extremely upset and enraged with the guy called 'God'. I've had many crises of faith before and I've seriously doubted my religion and its components, but this one takes the cake. Why would he do this? What had I or anyone in this family done that was so horrible that my daughter had to be the sacrifice for? Most importantly, what had Kathleen done that stirred such a wrathy God? Why was this happening?!

I stand, starting to pace. I need to ask him all this, but I need to go somewhere where I can say it freely and where I know he can hear me. The only place that comes to mind is the church.

I take the coat off of the ledge where I had put it before, and start to leave.

"Elliot, where are you going?" she asked, pleading with me.

"I need to say a few things to the man upstairs. I'll be back in an hour or so."

Kathy silently watches me make my way to the door. I'm searching for my keys. "El, you can't shut this out. Right now, maybe we shouldn't be thinking positively. Maybe we should be thinking worst-case scenario. You can't walk away from this one."

I hear her comments, but I ignore them. I just keep searching for my keys. Where the hell could I have put them? I feel her slender fingertips grip my shoulder. This causes me to turn to her.

"Elliot, this time, it isn't just a case. This time, it's not just another victim. This time, you have to talk to me."

I stare into her eyes, not knowing what to say. As if by magic, she holds the keys in front of my face, like she's daring me to take them from her trembling hands. I gently pry them from her fingertips and make my way to the door.

"You can't blame God for everything, Elliot," she calls out as I open the door.

"Sure I can. He's the one in charge of everyone's fate, isn't he? He's the one that chooses everyone's destiny, isn't he?"

It's the last thing I say as I'm out the door and in my garage. I get in the car and prepare for the reporters. I'm glad that I don't run any of them over, although I was silently praying for it.

I get to the church fifteen minutes later. As I arrive and park the car, I notice that it's completely abandoned. Nobody's here. I make my way to the doors and I notice that I'm the only one in the church as I walk in. I know I can say whatever I need to say freely and aloud, without anyone watching me.

"Is this some sort of joke?" I ask to the large crucifix in the front of the church that hangs over the altar. My words are dripping with hatred and I can hear my voice bounce and echo off the cathedral-styled walls.

"Seriously, is this some sort of test? Is this a punishment?" I look intently at the crucifix, staring at the figure hung on it. Jesus was some sort of martyr, but that didn't mean my daughter had to be. My daughter didn't have to die for any cause. Then, why was he making her go through this?! Why was she the one being put through hell when her biggest crime was gossiping in the hallway with her friends?

"Look, I know I haven't been the best person and I've done some things I'm not proud of, but surely I've done other things to make up for them. Serving my country, stepping up when Kathy got pregnant, raising four children in the Catholic faith, putting the bad guys away, helping victims; those weren't good enough? Those didn't contribute to the retribution I owe you at all?"

My voice is now sarcastic and curt. This is great. I'm being curt with my Creator.

"Or maybe it's to prove how weak I am. Maybe it's to prove that I can't protect everyone. Well, guess what, God? I get it! Alright? I get it! I know I can't always protect her. I know I can't always save her. I can't always help her…Now just being her back. Don't make her suffer because of my own ignorance."

The last sentences are weak and not as forceful as my other declarations. It's because I'm admitting defeat. I hate that. I hate this. I hate standing here and confessing everything to him. I hate staring at that man on the cross, hung with nails pushed into his bare flesh.

I hate knowing that it's not his fault.

"Daddy?" comes a sweet voice from behind me. I turn to see Maureen. "Daddy, are you okay?"

"Maureen, what are you doing here?" I can hear myself going into father mode.

"I went back home to see how everyone was doing and when I asked where you were, Mom said you came here. I came to see how you were doing." She says this with genuine concern; I can see it in her beautiful blue eyes. They're the exact same color as mine; the same color of Kathleen's. It seems all my girls, including Liz, are daddy's girls at heart.

I don't respond to my daughter, but I embrace her and take her into a hug. She holds on to me tight, as if she'd melt if she let go. I stroke her hair and keep her close.

"Daddy, come home," she says softly. The request is concise and to the point and it sounds simple. However, I don't feel as if I can go home yet. I don't want to face anything. I just want to disappear.

"Actually, sweetheart, I was thinking about going to see Liv. Just to get an update."

"Then home?" She pleads as if she's five again.

"Yeah, then home."

"Alright, Dad. I'm trusting you. Mom really wants you home. You go see Liv and then go straight home, okay?"

"Yes, Mother," I reply, joking. The weird part was that she really did sound like her grandmother.

"I love you, Daddy."

"I love you, too, baby."

We hug and then she's out the door again. She turns around before she leaves. "Daddy, you trust the people you work with, right?"

The question confuses me, but I answer anyway. "Yeah, kiddo, I do. I trust them with my life."

"And Kathleen is part of your life, isn't she?"

I'm still perplexed, but I, again, answer. "Of course she is. She's my child."

She takes her hand off the gold doorknob and slowly makes her way back to me; talking and walking. "That means, Dad, that when you put your life in their hands, your also putting your children's lives at their fingertips."

I look down, not wanting to look at her. I want to try to figure out where she's going with this.

"Just remember you trust them, Dad. You trust them with your life and you trust them with Kathleen's. She'll come home. They'll get her home."

I don't reply; I don't know how to. I don't get a chance to because once she gives me a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder, she's gone.

---  
**SVU Squadroom  
-****11:42am-**

The hallway to the bullpen is all too familiar, but it doesn't feel right. I used to come through halls with the expectation of, that once I got to the end, I would work. I'd put away the bad guys. But, now, it's more intimidating than ever. The hallways look ominous and gloomy and they seem like out of a scary story I once read the twins. This time, I don't get there with the expectation of being the helper, but rather, the expectation of being helped.

Olivia's there to greet me once I reach the finish line of my journey.

"El, I thought you went home after the press conference," she states simply. I guess we've given up on pleasant, simple 'hellos'.

"I did. I came back."

She stares and moves in closer to me. She begins to talk, talking softly. "El, listen. You need to go home. You said it, yourself. You all need to be together right now."

I shake my head, but her eyes seem to meet mine and follow me wherever I go. "Olivia, I just came to see how things were going."

"Nothing much has changed in the last hour. We're following the leads we're getting from the people that are calling, but you know those aren't always reliable. As soon as Munch gets back, we're going to canvas the area around the library."

She's so vague and I hate it. I guess I can understand the resistance to tell. But, that doesn't make it any easier.

"You got a minute?" I ask.

"Yeah, Munch just left. Why?"

"Come to the roof with me."

"For what, Elliot?"

"I just want to talk, but I don't know how. I don't know where I start. I figure once I'm up there, it'll just come out. I just need the right person to listen."

"Sure. Let me grab my coat."

She grabbed her leather jacket and we made our way up the stairs. The conversation was kept to a minimal as we were heading up. We arrived at the doorway and we both stepped out on to the roof and leaned over the ledge, looking at the busy city below us.

"So…" Olivia starts, sounding nervous.

" 'So…' what?" I reply, imitating her spoken word.

"Look, Stabler, you're the one who wanted me to come up here. You said that once you got up here, you could start talking, that you could let it go," she says, in a slightly sarcastic tone. I look at her expectantly. "Well, you're up here…let it all out, Elliot. I'm listening."

I feel like this was a bad idea. I feel too much on the spot.

"I…I…Oh hell, I don't know, Liv. I just don't know how to deal with it all. My daughter's missing, kidnapped by some psycho; my wife's grieving and kind of pissed that I can't talk to her about anything about this; my two youngest are actually quiet for the first time in their lives, which is never a good thing; and my first-born is pulling her psychology courses on me. I don't know what to do, Liv. I don't know how to handle this. It's so easy when I'm the one being asked these questions; when I'm the one giving the response. Now that I'm in different shoes, I'm lost. Just…completely lost."

"Elliot, things like these are never easy and if you're thinking that, because of your job, you should be able to understand everything going on and all that you're feeling, you're wrong. Nobody has all the answers all the time. You're not Superman, Elliot. You forget that sometimes. You are actually allowed to feel human emotions. You know, like feeling sad, upset, confused…and even lost."

Somehow, she always has the answers. "But, _why_ is this happening, Liv? Why is God doing this to me?"

Olivia ponders the statement for a minute. I shouldn't have brought God into the conversation. Not with her. Call me what you want, I know she's uncomfortable when it comes to religion, mostly because she failed to have one she could firmly hold on to. The job just seemed to tear every single one of them up.

"You shouldn't blame God, Elliot. He didn't kidnap your daughter." She says it simply, but it speaks volumes.

"You're right. But, he created the bastard that did."

"Elliot, do you really think that he put someone on this earth with the intentions of them being a rapist?"

"Yeah, I do. I don't want to, but my job shows me otherwise."

"El, you've said it yourself. Consciences are grown. They're developed throughout someone's life. People we deal with become who they are because they want to be; because they feel they can become whoever they want, not because God wants them that way."

I stare at her for awhile. "My whole life I've been a Catholic and now I'm getting answers from someone who doesn't believe in God."

I probably shouldn't have said that.

"I believe in God, Elliot. It's just…different. And everyone questions their faith. It's okay to doubt him. It's okay to ask why. I know I have."

"When did you become so well-versed with Catholicism, huh?"

"I don't know."

"Yes, you do. Is everything okay?"

"Elliot, I didn't believe in the God you do, but today, I found myself praying to him when I didn't even know how to."

"You prayed?" I asked incredulously. It's not meant as derogatory remark, but it just seemed a little absurd that Olivia Benson would call out for help to anyone…especially someone who couldn't be seen, touched, or heard.

"Yeah…kinda hard to believe isn't it? I can't believe it either. I prayed forever. For Kathleen, for you, for Liz, Dickie, and Maureen, for Kathy, for the unit."

"Thank you," I say softly.

"For?"

"For praying for my family. Thank you for all that you're doing."

"It's part of the job, Elliot. Finding missing children."

"No, it's not. Queens SVU could've taken it. But, when I called you, no complaints were heard. It's not just the job."

Olivia doesn't seemed touched or show any emotion.

"It's gotta be, Elliot. It's gotta be part of the job, because if it's not, I don't know how else to deal with it."

I want to reply, but Cragen interrupts.

"Olivia, John's back. Get on that canvassing. Hey, Elliot," he says handing out orders and then noticing my presence.

"Hey, Cap."

I realize that I should get home. I've got to keep my promise to Maureen.

"I'll see you later, Cap. Thanks Olivia."

I walk off the roof, ready to face those at home. Talking to Olivia put some things into perspective, but it doesn't make anything easier. I just need Kathleen here. I need to know she's still alive; that's she's still my breathing baby girl. Even is she isn't alive, she'll always be my baby girl. Somehow, that doesn't make me feel a whole lot better.

_Olivia Benson's POV _

I hope he makes it home safe.

It's the last thing I think of as he leaves. I can't believe how calm he seemed. Then again, he was pretty shook up when he started talking about God and the fact that even I had prayed. However, he's been pretty numb throughout everything. Sometime, you become so wrapped up in everything and upset beyond belief, that you can't feel anything.

I had turned numb long before this case, but I could practically feel Elliot's pain as he left.

Cragen watched him leave and then turned to me.

"Olivia, find John." It's not the first and it won't be the last time he's had to remind me to stay focused during this case.

I stare at him for awhile, contemplating him. He seems pretty concerned, but he was never one to wear his emotions on his sleeves.

"Everything okay, Olivia?" he asks worriedly.

"It's just…I made a promise to him, Don. When this first started, I promised him that I'd find her; that I'd bring her home."

He makes his way next to me and puts a reassuring hand on my shoulder. No words are spoken, but the actions speak for themselves.

I start to leave as he calls my name. "Olivia…"

I turn, preparing to listen. "Olivia, now is not the time to making promises…especially if you don't know if you can keep them."

I nod, knowing that it's the truth. I make my way down the stairs and to John sitting in the car. Sometimes, it's as if we're absolutely nowhere.

---

A/N – well, hope you enjoyed it. Besides the second chapter, this one is my favorite! I told you I'd would add Elliot. ;) Anyway, hope you liked it and the last line was compliments of The West Wing. It means that sometimes, you're so conflicted and pulled in so many different directions, you're left nowhere. So, review and tell me what you think. Chapter 2 of Setting My Sights is coming up. Question: Do you want a separate post or just another chapter added to the other one? And, chapter 8 of this will be out…once I write it! ) Until next chapter, adios! –Jessica


	8. Seconds Pass By

Title: _One of Their Own _

Author: SVUFanatic611

Rating: PG-13

A/N – First off, this isn't my favorite chapter and I'm not as proud of this one as I am the others. I felt that the story was kinda dragging along a little, so I decided that this chapter is gonna be kind of scattered. It's going to be more telling than showing, but in the next chapter, which is the concluding chapter, is going to be much better and filled with more dialogue and emotion.

Disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

---  
**Around ****New York City**** Public Library  
****December 5, 2003****  
-****2:04pm-**

"Are you sure you didn't see anything, Mr. Capone?" asked Olivia.

"I don't know. What happened exactly?" the seventy-eight-year-old man asked again.

"A girl was kidnapped, Mr. Capone. Do you remember seeing anything or anyone out of the ordinary?" asked Munch, getting a bit annoyed.

"Umm…"

"Maybe hear anything? Maybe somebody screaming?"

"No, I don't think so."

Munch and Olivia shared a glance.

"Thank you for your time, Mr. Capone," said Olivia, ending the conversation. They started to leave when he spoke up.

"Is that the little girl they've been talking about on the television all day? That cop's daughter?"

"Yes, sir, it is."

"I used to be a street cop. I retired when my partner's son was involved in drug trafficking and got killed during a shoot out. It was a shame, just like this little girl," he said, shaking his head. "Tell that detective that I'm thinking of him."

"Will do, sir."

-

"Mrs. Watson, did you see anything out of the ordinary? Maybe hear anything?"

"No, I'm sorry, I didn't."

"Are you sure? Please try your hardest to think back," pleaded Olivia.

"I'm sorry I can't help you further, Detectives."

-

"Yes, Ms. Arthur, a girl was kidnapped. Did you see anything?" asked Munch.

"No, I'm sorry, I get in the zone sometimes when I'm photographing and completely black out parts of a day. I really am sorry, Detective."

-

"Damn it!" Olivia exclaimed, as she got into the car.

"Well, what do we do now?" asked Munch, ignoring Olivia's outburst. "We've got just under three hours left on our twenty-four clock."

"How do you think the phones are coming?"

"Probably the same as two and a half hours ago. Unreliable. Unhelpful. Unworthy of our time."

"Well, we're not going to solve anything by sitting here. Let's get going. Back to the station?" she asked.

"Sure," he answered as he pulled out of the parking spot.

They drove in silence until Munch spoke. "How's Elliot?"

Olivia glanced at Munch. "Pretty bad. His daughter's missing."

"Did he seem okay when he talked to you?"

"How'd you know I talked to him?"

"I was waiting for about fifteen minutes, Olivia. I called Cragen to ask him if he knew where you were. Let's just call him Big Brother, he sees everything. He knew where you were."

She nodded. "It was hard watching him like that, you know? Seeing him so distraught and knowing that the only thing that was going to get him better was his daughter in his arms, knowing that that's my job and I'm not doing it, it's just…well, sometimes I hate this job."

-  
Munch and Olivia spent the three hours canvassing, talking to people, and trying to find Kathleen. All were futile attempts.

They drove around the city in hopes of finding Kathleen, but nothing worked. The detectives became dispirited and Olivia dreaded calling Elliot. She knew she had to, she promised him, but that didn't mean she wanted to.

**-****5:00pm-**

Munch and Olivia were in the car, sitting in silence, when they both saw the clock on the radio strike five o'clock p.m. Olivia leaned her head against the window as Munch exhaled deeply and let his head roll back to the head rest on the car seat.

Cragen sat at his desk when he saw his watch's second hand reach the twelve as the hour hand rested upon the five. He sighed, praying to the God he only hoped existed, and glanced at the vodka bottle lying in his open desk drawer. Knowing he shouldn't, wishing he could, hoping he wouldn't.

Elliot sat on his couch, watching the black screen. He couldn't get himself to turn on the television. He didn't want to hear anything about his daughter except from his co-workers. The clock on the wall next to the television struck five. His head dropped, unable to be supported by his neck anymore. He let his chin rest in his palms and the corners of his eyes fell upon Kathy. She entered the room, leaning on the doorframe and when her husband noticed her presence, she walked over and sat next to him on the couch. He put his arm around her and pulled her close.

Silence overcame them all as they watched the seconds pass by.

-

Munch and Olivia walked in to the bullpen and took their respective seats. Munch stared at his paperwork that needed to be finished and Olivia stared at the phone on her desk. She was hoping that someone else would call Elliot and tell him that they failed. But she knew that he didn't want anyone else besides her to call.

She reached her hand out and as her fingers wrapped themselves around the receiver, it rang. She flinched, a little jumpy and picked it up, knowing already who it was.

"Benson, Special Victims Unit," she answered professionally.

"It's Elliot," the weak voice came from the other end.

"I am _so_ sorry, Elliot…" she started, but got cut off.

"Don't apologize, Liv, just find her. Please," came the distressed voice again.

"I'm trying, Elliot. I really am. I'm not going to give up," she said, resting her forehead in her other hand.

"I'm really counting on you. I've always trusted you, Liv. Please, please don't let me down."

Munch glanced at her and realized she was on the verge of tears and then his eyes fell upon his watch. 5:34pm. Now I know there's no God, he thought. There can't be. He decided to check the leads the phones were getting.

-

It was about six o' clock when Olivia hung up from trying to calm Elliot down who finally had cracked and cried, letting the extent of his emotions flow through the other end of the phone. She put the receiver down and crossed her arms, leaning into the chair. "Any good leads from the phones?" she asked Munch when she saw him return two minutes later.

"A couple. I don't know how reliable they are, but they're worth a shot," he answered.

"Let's go." They both got up and grabbed their coats.

"No, you're not going anywhere," came the familiar voice of their captain from behind them.

"Cap, what are you talking about? Don't tell me you're giving up on this case," Olivia said, not even thinking.

"Are you kidding me, Olivia? This case stays open and worked on until we've got something. Which leads me to the next bit of info."

"What is it?" Munch asked.

Cragen moved closer to them, as if he wanted the conversation to remain secret. "A call just came in from vice. Patrol officers found a body. They called me because they thought it fit the description of the 'missing cop's daughter'."

---  
A/N – dun, dun, dun! What will happen? I know, this chapter isn't as good as some of my others, but I really just want to get to the next chapter and I guess this was a vital part without going on for forty more chapters! Hope you don't hate me and can forgive me. Anyway, last chapter is coming up sometime after Christmas, because I've got some family down. So, happy holidays! May they be filled with joy and merriment and may your new year be blessed in every way possible! Until next chapter, adios and happy holidays! –Jessica


	9. Lost and Found

Title: _One of Their Own _

Author: SVUFanatic611

Rating: PG-13

A/N: I added the part about the scene in which they find the body, but then I skipped a two day period to keep the flow of the story.

Disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

---  
**Alley by the Wallace Residence  
****December 5, 2003****  
-****6:34pm-**

Olivia and John shared a glance before grabbing their coats. Before leaving, Olivia took the photo of Kathleen out of the frame on Elliot's desk and stuck the photo in her jacket.

"Shit! We were supposed to have her before this happened!" yelled Olivia, getting into the car with Munch.

"Look, Olivia, we don't know if it's her or not, so just calm down, alright…please?"

"Easy for you to say, John. You're not the one who has to call Elliot and tell him that his daughter was murdered because his colleagues couldn't get to her in time!" Her voice rose with every word, and the comment hit John like a ton of bricks.

"You're right, Olivia. I don't, but _don't_ think that this is easy on me. You're treating me like I don't care; like this doesn't affect me in any way. Elliot may not be my partner, but he _is _a respected colleague of mine and I want to bring Kathleen back just as much as you do."

Olivia stared at John, surprised by his words, and then reviewed what she had said. "I…I'm sorry, John. I'm wound a little tight right now, I guess. I…I really am sorry."

"It's okay, but don't think you're the _only _one who is wound tight."

She nodded. "Let's just go check out this body."

They drove in silence, just like the other times during this case until they arrived at an alley outside a quaint house. It was covered by vice and CSU units.

"Well, what have we got?" Munch asked the M.E. on scene.

"Teen girl, beaten. She was found naked, but she wasn't raped," she answered.

"I'm surprised this place isn't crawling with the press," said Olivia, almost to herself.

"Well, you can thank the patrol officers who found her for that. They kept this under wraps until you arrived," came a voice of a vice officer from behind them.

Olivia and John turned and nodded. "So, where's the body?" she asked.

"Right over here," he said, leading them to a figure that was covered by a blue sheet. "These are the guys that found her," he said, introducing the two officers in uniform.

"Hi," they both replied in unison.

Olivia didn't feel as if she was ready to lift the sheet, so she questioned the officers.

"So, when did you find her?"

"About a couple minutes before I called your captain. We saw the news today and we thought it looked like her, but we weren't sure. We called you guys as soon as we found her."

"Alright, thank you."

Olivia knelt down in front of the body and took a deep breath before removing the sheet. She carefully shed the blue cover and examined the body with a careful eye. At face value, it did look like Kathleen. It looked _a lot_ like Kathleen. Same slender build, same light brown hair, but Olivia took in another factor that no one else thought of. Her eyes.

She carefully lifted an eyelid on the girl's face and looked intently at the color of the eyes. They were a vivid green.

Kathleen had bright _blue_ eyes.

Olivia had remembered Kathleen's entire visit that day she came to the precinct. Incidentally, the day before she was kidnapped. But, the one thing that rang in Olivia's mind was the color of Kathleen's eyes and how much they looked like Elliot's.

She examined the body closer, just to make sure. She took out the photo from her pocket and compared key points. This girl's nose was a little bit bigger and her face a little longer. The two looked remarkably alike, but it wasn't Kathleen.

She lifted herself from her position and Munch was right beside her. "It's not her, John," she said simply, but still sadly. It wasn't Kathleen, but that did mean that she was either lying dead somewhere else or still alive, being terrorized.

"I'll call Cragen," he said in reply, dismissing himself.

Olivia turned her attention to the M.E. "She wasn't raped and she's not our vic. Her case is going to Homicide."

"Already on it," came the voice of Detective Lennie Briscoe.

Olivia turned to face him and his partner and walked toward them. "Good luck with this one, guys," she said, beginning to leave.

"Benson," said Briscoe, stopping her. "Tell Elliot all of us have been thinking of him and our best wishes are with him. I know what it's like to lose a daughter."

She gave a small, weak smile and nodded. "Will do, Briscoe."

He nodded in return and went back to the scene. Olivia found John and they both slipped into the car.

**Two Days Later  
****December 7, 2003****  
SVU Squadroom  
-****7:08pm-**

"Why are we so sure the boyfriend is innocent?" asked Cragen.

"Because the mom confirmed his alibi," answered Benson.

"Moms lie all the time for their children. What makes this one different?"

"Because we went and checked him out again yesterday. When we talked to her, she wasn't too pleased with her son in general. I don't think she would've lied for him."

"Okay, so what's the deal with this teacher?"

"Well, his dirty little secret incidentally was revealed in the process of questioning her. She was pretty pissed when she found out he was cheating. She wouldn't cover for him. Not after finding out what he truly was."

"Well, what do we do now?"

"You know, Captain, I've been thinking," started Munch.

"This is one of the only times I'm ever going to say this. What's on your mind, John?"

"Wonder if this _isn't_ a kidnapping?"

Olivia scoffed. "Where the hell did that idea come from?"

"Just my incredible detective skills."

"Well, if she wasn't kidnapped, where is she? What happened to her?"

"She might've run away."

"That's crap and you know it," snapped Olivia, getting argumentative.

"Is it, Olivia? I hate to admit it, but we've seen it too many times before."

"Come _on_, Munch. What was she running away from? You were there when we talked to her friends. She had the perfect life."

"Maybe perfection was too much of a strain. Maybe she didn't want to face Phillip or that teacher. Maybe it's a stupid teenager hormone thing."

"I don't think so, Munch. She didn't run away."

"How can you be so sure, Olivia?"

"Because when I saw her that day…I don't know…ever hear of a hunch? My gut tells me she didn't run away. I mean, she's Elliot's daughter for Christ's sake."

"Exactly! We've been thinking that, because she is Elliot's daughter, she couldn't possibly have run away. How do her genetics have anything to do with it? And plus, we received a note when she first went missing. But, we have yet to receive another one…_after_ the clock was up."

"Why bother with a note if he already killed her?" she retorted through gritted teeth. "But, let's just say she did run away. Everyone we talked to mentioned that Kathleen was sincere and a good person. Even the ex. So, why would she run away and leave a note that would devastate her entire family?"

"To let them know how she went." After receiving confused looks, he elaborated. "Look, she could've left that note, and when she didn't return, Elliot, Kathy, and the rest of her family would've at least known how she 'died'. They wouldn't be left wondering the rest of their lives what happened to her. Maybe she thought of it as a sort of closure."

Then Olivia thought back to the day Kathleen visited the precinct. She played the conversation over and over, dissecting each and every word. Then a sentence that Kathleen had said rang over and over in her head. _"__It's like sometimes I just want to run away from it all."_

But this can't be true, Olivia thought. She couldn't have run away. Maybe I'm just taking this completely out of context.

"Earth to Olivia," said Cragen, waving a hand in front of her face. "What's on your mind?"

"It's something Kathleen said…when she was at the precinct," she replied blankly.

"Care to share with the class?"

"She said…uh…she said, 'It's like sometimes I just want to run away from it all.' Maybe Munch is right."

Cragen stared at Munch and then at Olivia. "I don't know, guys. This entire thing is pretty far-fetched. What other possibilities can we explore?"

It took a minute, but inspiration hit Olivia like a ton of bricks. "Cap!" she said, jumping out of her thoughts and surprising everyone around her.

"Got an idea?"

"Yeah. Look, this entire time we've been thinking this was done by someone who had a personal stake in Kathleen."

"Continue…we're listening."

"Wonder if this has nothing to do with her. Wonder is this is someone with a grudge against Elliot. I'm sure he's pissed off a lot of people through the years. What if they're getting back at him through hurting his daughter? We've seen _this _too many times before, too," she ended, looking at Munch.

The three took glances at each other. Shit, should've thought of this earlier, they all thought.

"Well, check the case files in which Elliot was lead detective or where he was publicly threatened. If it gets to be too much, call him. Find out the one's that really stuck to him."

Olivia and Munch nodded in unison and got ready to check files when the phone rang.

**One hour earlier  
Narcotics Unit  
-6:****06pm-**

_Fin Tutuola's POV _

"Listen, if we're going to do this bust right, y'all need to listen up. Listen up, remember your assignments, what jobs and posts you've been assigned. We don't have room to screw up and I don't have time to babysit ch'all's rookie asses. So…let's go over it again…"

I had been repeating this plan over and over, but somehow, I don't think these little stuck-up weasels knew what the hell they were doin'. I always have to be placed with the difficult people. First Munch, now these punks.

When Cragen offered the temporary position to me, I didn't know what to think. I wasn't too inclined because I would be dealin' with rookies and I wasn't too keen to return to Narcotics. Plus, I wouldn't be assisting in the effort to find Kathleen. But, if I didn't, a rape victim wouldn't sleep any easier and another case wouldn't have been closed. It all rested upon my decision. Wonderful.

I finally finished repeating the plan of how we were going to bust Sanchez and his guys. Julio Sanchez was one of the worst I had ever encountered – whether it was in Narcotics or Special Victims. Not only was he a rapist, he was a dirty drug lord. We had been watching him for days and, after sending in numerous undercover units, we finally knew when his big deal was coming in. We packed up our stuff and headed to our post, where I was in the van, ready to bust his sorry ass.

The next hour was spent putting on wires to the people going in, setting sound, and other numerous, little tasks. When it reached seven, we were finally ready. We saw the second party of the deal go in and I knew we had him cornered. I waited for the guy inside's signal and moved in.

"NYPD, Don't move!" I yelled, but they weren't that stupid to actually listen. I chased Sanchez and a couple of his guys until I saw another that was next to me pull out a gun. I stopped chasing them, leaving it up to the four people that were hopefully posted in the back and pulled out my gun on his ass.

I really don't remember the rest. It was such a big blur. Gunshots were fired, but _I_ wasn't hurt. And I do remember Sanchez and his guys getting away. The punks that were stationed in the back "got confused and couldn't remember where they were supposed to go". But one thing came out of this "bust". Well, two things really, but only one _good _thing. Well, _maybe _you could consider it a good thing.

I checked the house, as was procedure. I went into every single room, checking it as if I had a microscope, but the last one that was in my inspection held something precious – like a treasure we all wanted to find.

I checked the main aspects of the room, walking around the bed and checking underneath it. But then I heard a voice. It was muffled and very weak and small. It sounded as if it was coming from the closet. I whisked over to it, ransacking it. The voice seemed to get closer, but I couldn't pin-point it. I threw the clothes into the air, letting them land wherever they did, when finally I found the top of a head.

I removed the rest of the clothes surrounding the body and set my eyes upon a teenage girl, half naked, only in her bra and underwear, tied up at the hands and feet and with tape over her mouth. I picked her up and laid her on the neatly-made bed. She was half awake and her body was covered in fresh bruises and cuts. I removed the tape from her mouth, her wrists, and her ankles and checked her breathing. It was staggered, but it wasn't too bad. She was shivering and her body became covered in goosebumps. I took my jacket and wrapped it around her, trying to keep her warm.

She was muttering something I couldn't make out, but I was relieved to know she could at least talk. She knew and recognized my presence, keeping her half-opened eyes glued on me. I looked intently into her vivid blue eyes that were vaguely familiar and I could tell that they were yearning for help. "I'm going to get you some help, alright? Don't worry." I was about to yell for someone to get a bus, but someone came in.

"Fin…Fin…" he began, out of breath. "Leo…Leo…he…he got shot. You gotta come. "

I shared glances between Mark and the girl. "Listen, I'm going to call for help and check out this guy. I will be back in just one minute. I promise," I said sincerely. When I moved, she grabbed my wrist.

"N…no…yo…you ca…can't l…leave. So…some…someone's…gotta…c…call…my…d…dad," she said, shivering and her teeth chattering.

I looked at her. "Who's your dad?" I asked gently.

"F…Fin…it…it's m…me…K…Ka…Kath…leen – Ell…Elli…Elliot's…d…daugh…"

She didn't have to complete her thought. "Okay, okay. I'll call him and Olivia right now. I'll be right back."

"Pl…please…d…don't…l…le…leave…me."

"Officer Roberts, stay with her while I go check Leo and make a phone call. Keep her warm, keep her talking. And use the radio to call for a bus. Tell them we've got a gunshot victim and a possible rape victim."

"Yes, sir," he answered, his eyes wide and hands shaking. He still wasn't used to the shock of finding naked or half-naked victims.

I left the room to phone Cragen and everyone else. I looked over to the gunshot victim and he was already being taken care of and it seemed under control. I took my cell phone out from my pocket and Olivia answered after two rings.

"Benson."

"Olivia, it's Fin…Listen, we found her."

"Who's 'her'?"

"Kathleen. We found Kathleen."

"Are you sure it's her?" she replied in shock.

"She asked for Elliot. I would say it's her."

"Look, not to doubt you or anything, but we've come across at least two other people who were called in as Kathleen. Let me just ask. What's the color of her eyes?"

I didn't know exactly _why_ she was asking it. Maybe it was a holdback question or something. "Blue. They're a bright blue."

I heard her go into shock. "Where are you guys? Is she alive?"

"Yeah, she's alive and breathing. Just get down here and can you call Elliot? I got a gunshot victim I've got to watch over." I gave her the address, she told me she'd be over in as soon as possible, and I hung up.

"Fin, get over here. I'm losing his pulse," said Ken, somewhat of a seasoned cop, as he hung over Leo's body.

Oh God. I had hoped that the bus would arrive soon.

---  
**SVU Squadroom**

"Come on, Olivia. Take this pile and start looking through it," said Munch, pushing a mountain-high pile of folders toward her.

Olivia remained silent and in shock.

"Olivia, if this is going to get done, you've got to focus. Come on, I'll take this pile. You take that one," said Munch, persuading her out of her trance.

"No…don't bother," she managed to get out.

"Why? What are talking about, Olivia? What was that phone call about?"

"They found her," she replied, finally making eye contact with Munch.

"What?" he asked in disbelief.

"Fin. Fin found her. They found Kathleen."

Munch stared at her in disbelief. "Are they sure it's her?"

"Positive. She asked for Elliot and her eyes…they were bright blue."

"Let's get down there."

"Tell the captain and I'll call Elliot on the way."

---  
a/n – This was getting pretty long, so it's continued over to the next chapter…enjoy! –Jessica


	10. Bruised, Broken, Unsure, Lost

Title: _One of Their Own _

Author: SVUFanatic611

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: SVU and its associated characters are not mine.

---  
_Olivia Benson's POV_

"Fin!" I cried as I raced to the door of the house, skipping over the ambulances and other police cars. "Where is she?" I asked hurriedly, approaching him.

"She was in a room, but I moved her onto the couch in the living room."

"What happened to him?" asked Munch as a man on a stretcher was brought out through the front door.

"Gunshot victim."

I was in no mood to sit and chat about the hole in the guy's chest, so I changed the subject.

"Is Kathleen still in the house?"

"Yeah."

"Why hasn't she been put in a bus yet?"

"I tried. She wouldn't go unless she had someone she knew in there with her. I couldn't go. I have to stay here. I kept an eye on her, but I figured that maybe you'd ride with her," he said, staring at me.

I nodded and then he asked Munch to help him with something. Munch gave me a questioning look and I allowed him to go with a wave of my hand. Kathleen didn't need to be bombarded. One person was enough.

I walked inside and my heart sunk. I was so glad to see her in the flesh, alive and breathing, but the condition in which I found her didn't make it easy for me to be relieved. I found her in the corner of the couch, wrapped in a thin blanket, her hair a wreck, her drooping eyes filled with tears, and her cheeks stained by the ones that had fallen.

"Kathleen?"

She didn't flinch at the sound of her name and never made eye contact with me.

"Kathleen? It's Olivia," I tried again, sitting down next to her. The only moving she was doing was shivering and she barely blinked. I placed a hand on her shoulder, but she gave me no response. Shock was my first guess.

"Kathleen, it's Olivia. I just want to help you."

She turned her head slightly and her bright blue eyes finally met mine. "Hey," I said, easing her into talking.

"Wh…where's my d…dad? F…Fin said he w…would c…call my d…dad," she said, shivering.

"An officer got shot and Fin was taking care of him. I called your dad on the way here and he's going to meet us at the hospital, okay? I promise."

She gave a weak nod and stared back into space. "Fin, get the EMTs in here. Let's get her to the hospital," I told him as he entered the house again.

I turned to watch her and she suddenly fell into my arms, quietly sobbing. I openly invited her and stroked her hair. "It's going to be okay, Kathleen. It's going to be okay. Shh…" I said, cooing her gently, trying to calm her down. She was freezing and I took off my jacket and wrapped it around her. I rubbed her back, and she cried out in pain as loud as she could, which wasn't at all ear-shattering. I cupped her shoulders. "Kathleen, what's wrong?"

She gently took off the jacket and let the blanket fall off of her shoulders. She was only in her bra and underwear and she leaned her head on my shoulder once again, letting her back to be in my complete view. Three long lashes were spread over her back and a small tingle went through my own as I gave them the once-over. They were fresh and they were deep enough to cut through the surface of the skin. Blood was beginning to clot, but it looked like she had lost a lot when they were first made.

"Kathleen? What happened?"

"Wh…whip ma…"

"Whip marks?" She nodded.

I looked back over at her and realized her eyes were closed. I didn't know if it was because of the cold, the exhaustion, or the blood loss, but I could tell Kathleen was slipping into a dark oblivion that I knew she probably wouldn't or couldn't be able to get out of.

"Kathleen? Kathleen, honey, you gotta stay with me. You gotta stay with me, sweetie," I pleaded. Her eyes jerked open and she looked up and me.

"Wh…wha'…d…do…ya…wa…wanna…t…talk…a…about?"

"Weather's always a good topic," I replied. Anything to keep her eyes half-open and her mouth muttering whatever was fine with me. But, where the hell were those EMTs? "It sure is cold out there." It sounded so stupid, but whatever worked.

"W…Wow, Livia. No w…won…wonder w…why you be…be…came a de…tec…tive. You…are sss…soo ob…observant," she replied, just as sarcastic as her father would've been.

I laughed a little and she let out a tiny, barely-there smile.

"Do you like it better when it's cold or do you like warmer weather?"

"C…cold wh…weather. I l…like it when i…it snows."

I could tell she was getting warmer; her speech wasn't as torn apart, but her voice was getting softer.

"Really? I hate snow."

"R…really?"

"Yeah, well, I think I like snow_flakes _more than snow."

She didn't respond and I looked around for the EMTs. Nowhere to be seen. Crap.

"Kathleen, listen, I'm going to carry you to the ambulance, okay? We've gotta get you to the hospital." She let out a soft moan as her agreement. I picked her up, gently holding her as if I was cradling her, and walked outside; finding all of them huddled around the back of one ambulance.

"What happened to you guys? I asked for you almost ten minutes ago!" I berated them.

"Sorry, Detective," one said sheepishly.

"What happened?"

"The gunshot victim died as we were putting him the ambulance. We were trying to revive him. I'm sorry, Detective. I guess we got sidetracked," he said again, with genuine concern.

I stared in shock until Kathleen's moan snapped me back to reality. "Just get her to the hospital," I said, handing her over to him. He gently laid her on a stretcher, blanket, jacket and all, when she called out to me.

"Livia! You g…gotta come w…with me!" she yelped, as they put the stretcher into the back of the ambulance.

"I'm coming. I'm right behind you," I replied, holding onto my emotions. I got in, taking a seat next to her, and her hand waved in the air, searching for mine to hold it. I took her hand in mine, holding it with two hands, trying to keep her warm. The EMTs went straight to work.

"She, uh, she has whip marks on her back and they look fresh," I stammered, taking my eyes off of Kathleen, to inform them.

"Alright, we'll take care of them," he replied as he shut the door and the vehicle was started.

She was scared, but she didn't say so. I looked into her frantic eyes and they said it all. They said she was scared; they said she was shocked; they said they wanted it to end; they begged for her dad.

It was the one thing I couldn't offer her right then, right there.

Sure, I could offer her comfort, solace, a hand to hold, someone to talk to, but I couldn't offer her mom, her siblings, and most of all, her father.

Complete silence, except for the soft groans of pain coming from Kathleen, filled every available space of the back of the ambulance. After about twenty minutes, one EMT finally spoke to me.

"Detective, we took care of the whip marks, but we're going to need you to keep her talking. It's always a good thing."

"L…Livia," she started modestly, knowing that she needed to keep her eyes open and her mouth moving. She was lying on her side, looking at me. "L…let's talk about y…your love of snowflakes."

I gave her a small smile and briefly felt relieved that she wasn't shivering as much as before. "What do you want to say about them?"

"Why d…do you love th…them?"

I shrugged. She was being such a trooper, putting up with everything. I never heard one complaint from her. She reminded me so much of Elliot, it actually scared me. "I don't know. I guess because they're like people. No two are the same."

"Wh…what a deep, poetic reason. I would've said be…because they were pr…pretty."

I laughed louder. Through it all, she was cracking jokes. I couldn't believe it. But, I didn't know if it was her personality or if she was refusing to acknowledge what had happened to her and laugh it off.

"Well, that's not a bad reason, either," I said, smiling. I let my detective exterior melt away gently and slipped into a softer demeanor that allowed me to show some emotion. Kathleen knew me as that – not a hard-ass detective.

She let out a soft smile. "Well, O…Olivia, weather's getting pr…pretty boring. Let's m…move on."

"Alright, well, we could talk about…"

"We're here. Let's get her inside, Ken," the EMT said.

They stopped the car, brought out the stretcher, and led us inside. We had just passed the automatic-sliding doors when Kathleen spoke up.

"Olivia, what's going to happen now?" she said, surprisingly clear and unbroken.

I checked to see if the nurse was near me. "Well, Danielle and I are going to take you into an exam room and she's going to perform a rape kit."

"But…"

"What, sweetheart, what is it?"

"I really don't wanna…"

We wheeled around a corner and stopped in front of a room.

"Kathleen, are you comfortable walking?" I asked gently as she got off the stretcher, pulling the blanket around her.

"I was kidnapped, Olivia. I'm not an invalid."

I let out a single laugh. "You sound exactly like your father," I said, as she grabbed onto my arm, waiting to be guided.

"Really? Because when I talk to him like that, he says I sound like you." I must've made a face or something, because she came back with, "Don't worry, I take it as a compliment."

"I would hope so," I said sarcastically.

"So, what do I do now?" she asked.

Danielle answered for me. "Well, do you know the process of a rape kit?" I was so glad she was taking it easy with her and talking her through it. Kathleen needed that.

She looked at me with wide eyes. "I really don't want to do this, Olivia."

I looked into her eyes. "I know you don't, and I don't want to have to put you through this, but you want to get the guy that did this, don't you?"

She gave me a weak nod.

"This will help us get him. This will give us some evidence to nail him with. Plus, it lets us know you're okay."

"What do you mean?"

"It lets us know if you contracted any diseases and prevents any pregnancies."

She looked so scared that I mentioned diseases and pregnancies, but she turned back to the nurse.

"My dad mentions them a lot, but I don't exactly know what they entail," she answered truthfully.

"Okay, in a rape kit, we basically collect all the evidence he left on you. We use the UV light to detect any body fluids and perform a vaginal exam. We collect DNA and do blood work and we send all of it to the lab so they can analyze it."

Kathleen gave a frightened look at me and Danielle, but Danielle spoke up again. "I know, it's a lot at once, but I promise we'll take it slow and I'll talk you through everything. And these are on a volunteer basis, so if you want to stop at any time, it's okay."

Kathleen looked back at me. "Can Olivia stay?" she asked.

Danielle looked up at me and smiled. "Absolutely. Olivia can actually help me. Now, why don't you go change into this," she said, handing her a hospital gown, "and I'll get set up."

Kathleen's hand peeked out from the blanket draping her, took the gown in her hand, and walked behind the thin partition to undress.

"Olivia, good to see you again," she said, in a breathy tone as she grabbed cotton swabs and other miscellaneous items.

"Well, it's always a pleasure, disregarding the circumstances."

"Olivia, is that Elliot's daughter that's been all over the news?" she asked in a whisper.

"Yeah, it is."

"I'll take it slow, I promise," she said, but I didn't get a chance to respond.

"Where can I put the stuff I took off?" Kathleen asked, coming out in the gown.

"Those two bags right there." She did as she was told and Danielle went on. "Okay, first we're going to…"

I let her voice drone out. I actually don't remember it all word for word, action for action. But, I remember turning off the lights so Danielle could check for fluids; bagging the things she handed to me; holding Kathleen's hand when Danielle performed the vaginal exam; and most of all, I remember the fear. I remember the fear in Kathleen's eyes as Danielle talked her through the exam, explaining everything in painstaking detail. I remember the look of fear and uncertainty in her eyes when she had to take the morning after pill and the STD exams.

I remember being fearful for her.

"Okay, Kathleen, we're done. Your results will be done in a few days and the hospital will contact you with them. You've been so great during this," Danielle said as she smiled and headed for the door. "I wish you the best, Kathleen," she said as she exited.

Kathleen rose in the bed and propped herself up against the pillows. "Olivia, is my dad here?"

I hadn't checked if Elliot had arrived, but maybe it was a good thing that he never had to sit through his daughter's rape kit.

"I don't know, sweetie, but I can check."

"Do have to give you a statement before I can see him?"

I looked at her and smiled. "Absolutely not. I wouldn't let you."

She smiled in return and I went outside to find Elliot, Kathy, Maureen, and the twins sitting and waiting.

"Guys," I began and they all stood at my presence. "We just did a rape kit on her and she's asking for all of you."

I lied a little. She, in fact, had only asked for Elliot, but I didn't want to upset anyone by admitting that. Kathy looked up to me.

"She…she was raped?"

I looked down. "Kathy, just go see her. We'll talk about all that later."

She nodded. "That room, right there?"

"Yeah, she's waiting."

She started to walk toward the room when Maureen caught up with her, Dickie right behind her, and Liz racing to the door, ahead of them all. Elliot stayed behind.

"Elliot, she's waiting," I said, hoping he'd move ahead without the third degree.

"What happened to her, Liv?" he asked. His voice meant business.

I looked him in the eye. "Elliot, we'll talk about that later."

"No, Olivia, I want to know right now."

I stared into his blue eyes that had haunted me for the past three days and got serious. "Elliot Stabler, your daughter has just been found after being missing for three days. You want to know what the first thing out of her mouth was? She wanted to know if anyone had called her dad. She was _only_ asking for you. Elliot, I'm not going to lie, she's been through a lot, but how do think she's going to feel when the one person she's been calling for is the one person not in that room? _Don't_ make her through that," I said, never breaking eye contact.

He stared at me, surprised by my words. He didn't say anything, but he walked past me and entered the room.

I decided to leave them alone for awhile when Munch came in. "Hey, Olivia. Sorry I bailed on you earlier."

"No, don't worry about it. I think one person was enough," I said, exhaling as we both sat down.

"Is she okay?"

"Yeah, she was shook up, but I think she's better now that her family's with her. She's not as bad as she looks. She's mostly covered in defensive wounds."

"She's a fighter."

"Of course she is. She's a Stabler." I wanted to change the subject. "So, how was the gunshot victim?"

"Dead. We were putting him in the ambulance, and he just died."

We both nodded, not sure how to respond to each other's situation. "Guess we've both had crappy days."

"Well, you at least got Kathleen safe and back with her family."

"No, I didn't find her. Fin did."

"Yes, Fin _technically_ found her. But, you sat there with her. You held her hand. You stroked her hair. You stayed with her the _entire_ time, Olivia. _That's_ what's important. _That's_ what she's going to remember."

I didn't want to argue. She was actually going to remember a lot more than I wanted her to. She was going to remember every horrible detail about those three days. I wished I could have washed away every bad memory.

The awkward silence didn't last long because Maureen came out, tears threatening to fall. She came walking over to me, and Munch and I stood at her arrival.

"You know, Olivia, I'm going to go get coffee. Want some?" Munch asked.

It was going to be a long night. "Coffee's great. Thanks, John."

"Maureen? Could I interest you?"

"No thanks, John."

He left and she turned toward me. "Listen, Olivia, I know you hadn't seen me that much when she was missing, but I know how much you did, and I just wanted to say thank you."

"Maureen, you don't have to thank me."

"Yes, I do. You went above and beyond, Olivia. You know it…just, thank you."

"Well…your welcome."

She suddenly took me into a hug and held onto me tight. I returned it and savored it. She pulled away and stared at me, eyes fresh with tears. She seemed speechless.

"Go on, get in there," I said, motioning her to the door. She smiled and obeyed.

I stood in front of the window, peering in on Elliot and his family. I could see Elliot taking Kathleen into a huge hug and he didn't let go for awhile. If he only knew how much that meant to her.

I looked at Kathleen and she looked so happy. But, I knew she was hurting deep down and I didn't know how long she'd take to heal…if she ever would. She looked so bruised, broken, unsure, lost.

But, don't bruised things eventually turn back to their natural color? Can't broken things be pieced back together? Don't unsure people ultimately find their answers? And, don't lost people someday find their way?

I had thought those things for the past few years, but my job just seemed to disprove all of them. Some women never healed. Some women never accepted what happened to them. Some never lived again. Those had become the laws I had come to known.

But, wasn't there always at least one exception to every rule? I had hoped to God Kathleen was the exception to the rule. I had hoped Kathleen would find her way and healing would begin.

But, I could do more than hope. I could find her kidnapper. I could put this man to justice. I could work my ass off. She was certainly worth it.

But, I couldn't think anymore. I saw Munch come down the hall with my coffee. It was going to be a _long_ night.

_Elliot Stabler's POV _

She was home. She was finally home. I walked through the doors and she was sitting on the bed. If she wasn't my daughter, I would have thought she was just another victim.

"Daddy?" she asked timidly. In all sixteen years of her life, she had never been timid.

"It's me, in the flesh," I said. I walked over to her and pulled her into a hug. She had never hugged me tighter. I don't think we let go for about ten minutes. The entire time, I was crying, as was she. It was such a blur. I just remember that my baby was home…and that was all that mattered.

"I love you so much, Daddy. I missed you," she said, in between the flow of tears.

"I love you, too, sweetheart. I missed you more than you'll ever know."

---  
a/n – hope that wasn't a sucky ending. Okay, here's the deal. I want to take this story further, but I don't want to have any more chapters with this story, because it's a little much. So, I'm going to create a sequel that deals with the aftermath and how it affects everyone. This is the end of this story, but a beginning is coming. Don't worry, I'm working on the "soccer sequel" to _Setting My Sights_. Hope that's okay with everyone.

Anyway, hope you liked it and I gave you the father/daughter reunion. Hope it wasn't sucky! ) Until next post, adios! –Jessica


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